For many of the same reasons that we demonstrated earlier that more people keep buying more guns, legislators and courts across the nation are seeing the light of every individual’s right to keep and bear arms. It’s still stunning to me that so many gun laws under the guise of “gun control” have passed in the last 100 years that clearly infringe on our individual rights. I understand where the gun laws are coming from. However, I maintain that most, if not all, laws restricting an individual’s right to buy, own, or carry a firearm are misguided, blaming the gun instead of the individual criminal. A simple look at England since 2000 should be enough demonstration that banning guns only leads to banning knives which only leads to banning forks (different reason, supposedly), and where does it end? But here in the US, gun laws are changing.
Further evidence of this momentum is President Biden’s latest “gun control” announcement today, which involves serializing so-called “ghost guns”. It’s an executive order, not legislation, because even Biden sees the light that gun control legislation has failed and that very few lawmakers have the appetite to try more gun control legislation. More about this latest attempt in a future article.
Half of US States Now Have Constitutional Carry
Isn’t it amazing that we have to refer to the Constitution when naming a law that upholds the Constitution because the Federal government and local governments have so obviously infringed upon the rights protected (not granted) by the 2nd Amendment?
Regardless, as of April 2022, twenty-five of our 50 states have passed legislation that removes the government requirement for a permit to carry a firearm in public. Our great state of Georgia will be the 25th. As of this writing, Governor Kemp has not yet signed the Georgia Constitutional Carry Act into law, though it is on his desk awaiting signature.
Nebraska has legislation in progress to enact Constitutional Carry, so the Cornhusker state could be number 26. It’s easy to see where the momentum is.
SCOTUS: NYSRPA v. Bruen Gun Laws Ripple Effect
Few people realize how big this Supreme Court case actually is. On the surface, NYSPRA v Bruen purports to strike down the New York State “may issue” law. It could, but if it does, there will be a significant 2A ripple effect across the nation.
The main point of the case is that, if you want to apply for a weapons carry permit in New York State, you must demonstrate a special need for such a permit. In other words, you have to demonstrate that your life is in danger in order to ask the government permission to carry a weapon outside your home.
From our research, it appears that the high court agrees with the petitioners, the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, that the state’s requirement is indeed an infringement on the state’s citizen’s right to bear arms. That is the result we hope for.
However, if that result is achieved, the ripple effect will not be limited to New York.
“Shall Issue” vs. “May Issue”
As of this writing, most US states – 41 to be exact – are “shall issue” states. That means that when a law abiding citizen applies for a weapons carry permit, the municipality “shall issue” the permit. Some counties in our locale are known to take their sweet time, but most take about 30-60 days to issue the permit.
On the other side of things, there are “may issue” states. According to the USCCA, “may issue” means that applicants must pass basic requirements and the issuing authority (county sheriff, police department, etc.) is allowed to use their own discretion in either issuing or denying a permit. Some may-issue states require an applicant to show “good cause” for obtaining a permit, while others require the applicant to show he or she is of suitable character and may require character references in order to authorize a permit. Other states require a mental health records check.
There are currently nine may issue states:
- California
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Hawaii
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- New Jersey
- New York
- Rhode Island
If Bruen goes the way we believe it will, then all of these “may issue” states will no longer be “may issue” states, because the SCOTUS ruling could very well nullify the requirement for an applicant to show “good cause” for obtaining a permit. That would mean that all 50 states would then be “shall issue” states.
Gun laws are changing, and these changes represent significant momentum for Constitutional gun rights for US Citizens. Constitutional Carry is a great example of states fighting back against Federal laws that clearly and completely violate the 2nd Amendment’s tenet that our right to keep and bear arms “shall not be infringed.”
1 thought on “Gun Laws in the U.S. Are Changing”