A drive to expand concealed-weapons rights has stalled on Capitol Hill, now gun-rights groups are hoping a flurry of lawsuits currently in the courts will overturn state laws restricting who can apply for the right to carry a concealed firearm.
The pro-gun groups were buoyed by last year’s ruling invalidating the District of Columbia’s strict laws, and they are now looking to the Supreme Court[1] to weigh in and establish a nationwide guarantee that Americans are entitled to some concealed-carry rights.
A Maryland resident and a gun-rights group in the state filed a lawsuit in April challenging the state’s stiff criteria for obtaining a concealed-weapons license, while a federal judge could rule this month on whether a similar challenge filed in New Jersey in February can move forward.
“The government cannot require citizens to prove a special need in order to exercise their fundamental rights,” said Chris Cox, executive director of the legislative-lobbying arm for the National Rifle Association, which is backing the residents’ challenges.
Concealed-carry is the natural battleground for pro-Second Amendment groups and gun-control advocates. The Supreme Court[2] over the last decade ruled that Americans have a personal right to bear arms, but said states do have the power to impose reasonable restrictions on that right.
Courts have generally said the right to own a firearm in one’s home is now protected — but what restrictions can be placed on carrying a weapon outside the home is heatedly contested.
A federal judge in Massachusetts has sided with gun-control advocates, upholding strict concealed-carry requirements in that state. An appeal is pending, and 19 state attorneys general petitioned the appeals court[3] in April to reverse the ruling and strike down Massachusetts law.
Gun-rights advocates point to last year’s high court ruling
