New York gun control regime handed defeat in court

Second Amendment activists scored another win against New York State's expansive gun control regime on Thursday.

A federal judge said a newly enacted state law that bans licensed firearms owners from carrying concealed weapons on all private property, unless the owners permit weapons with a sign or by express consent, violates the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.

"At least as to private property open to the public (the subject of this motion), New York's restriction is unconstitutional," wrote U.S. District Court John Sinatra, Jr., a Trump appointee. 

"Regulation in this area is permissible only if the government demonstrates that the new enactment is consistent with the Nation's historical tradition of sufficiently analogous regulations," the judge wrote, citing recent Supreme Court precedent. "New York fails that test here." 

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The judge also denied a motion from New York for a two-week stay in the ruling while the state Attorney General's office filed an appeal, reasoning that the state is unlikely to succeed on the merits. 

Sinatra said that property owners have a right to exclude legal gun owners from carrying firearms on their property. "But the state may not unilaterally exercise that right and, thereby, interfere with the long-established Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens who seek to carry for self-defense on private property open to the public." 

The Concealed Carry Improvement Act, signed by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul in July 2022, was passed in response to a Supreme Court ruling that declared the state's previous concealed carry permitting requirements unconstitutional. Last December, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit blocked several provisions of the law from taking effect, though it upheld a controversial requirement that concealed carry permit applicants demonstrate good moral character and disclose household and family members on a permit application.

The appellate court also let stand a ban on concealed carry in so-called "sensitive places," including theaters, bars, public parks and other spaces.

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Gun rights activists praised Sinatra's decision. "This is yet another important victory for Second Amendment rights and another major loss for New York, authoritarian governments, and radical anti-rights organizations like Everytown and Giffords," said Brandon Combs, president of the Firearms Policy Coalition. 

"We will continue to fight forward as we work to restore the full scope of the right to keep and bear arms throughout the United States. Hopefully Kathy Hochul is ready to write another check for legal fees," he added. 

The New York Attorney General's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Earlier this week, Hochul celebrated her administration's gun control policies, announcing that gun violence in New York State has declined 47 percent since she took office in 2021. 

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"And you all know what happened when the Supreme Court overturned the laws against concealed carry weapons, stripping away the power of the governor of this state to make her citizens safe. When the Supreme Court did that, we didn't throw up our hands and surrender. We fought back," Hochul said. 

"We doubled down. We came up with legislation. And we have a prohibition on concealed carry weapons in sensitive places. I personally think every place is sensitive, don't you? Alright, well, we drew the lines, okay? We decided what was sensitive, and so far we are good."

However, gun rights groups argue that Sinatra's decision shows Hochul is wrong.

"As we’ve said all along, the ‘sensitive place’ carry restrictions imposed by New York post-Bruen are unconstitutional. Hard stop," said Bill Sack, director of Legal Operations for the Second Amendment Foundation. "We are thrilled that once again, the courts have agreed, and sent this amoral and unlawful ban packing."