New York: 2AF Fights NY Ban on Carrying in Churches
The Second Amendment Foundation (2AF) filed a case this week to contest a New York state ban on carrying firearms in churches. Churches are included in the list of “sensitive locations” where carrying firearms is prohibited under new laws enacted in the state of New York last month. Since then, a number of provisions in the state's post-Bruen gun laws have been thrown out but this one has remained.
In a press release issued this week, 2AF's Alan Gottlieb stated that “New York officials are determined to fight progress, not to mention the Supreme Court's common sense, by engaging in legal acrobatics that promises to mire the state in federal lawsuits for the foreseeable future. The right of self-defense is the oldest human right, and New York's law is written to frustrate the exercise of that right at every turn.”
Notably, Jack Wilson — an armed parishioner in Texas — stopped a shooting at his church in December of 2019, and was awarded the governor's Medal of Courage by Texas Governor Greg Abbott in January of 2020.
New Jersey: State Legislators Want to Pass Gun Laws More Restrictive Than New York's
A judge's decision in the NRA-backed case of Mazahreh v. Grewal states this week that concealed-carry license applicants in the state of New Jersey must not be asked to “justify their need to carry a firearm.” Still, New Jersey lawmakers want to pass further restrictions on lawful gun owners and future gun owners of their state.
As previously reported in American Liberty News: “The sweeping gun control bill planned to be introduced in the state would ban guns at 25 kinds of public venues, including bars, beaches and any private establishment that doesn't explicitly welcome the presence of firearms.”
California: California Rifle & Pistol Association Sues City of Glendale Over Gun Ban on “Public Property”
The California Rifle & Pistol Association, Second Amendment Foundation (2AF) and Gun Owners of California are suing the city of Glendale over a gun ban that encompasses not only “city property, but also publicly-controlled property or public-affiliated private property, with the only exceptions being streets, roads and sidewalks.” 2AF Founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb believes that “the Glendale ordinance is unconstitutional. The Supreme Court has made it clear that the right to keep and bear arms for personal protection extends outside the home. As we note in our complaint, the burden is on the city to prove that all areas falling within the definition of ‘city property' are so-called ‘sensitive places,' and they cannot do it.”
Bonus Win of the Week: Major Decision From West Virginia – The Constitution Says Nothing About Serial Numbers
Judge Joseph R. Goodwin of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia ruled on Wednesday that “possession of a firearm with an altered, obliterated, or removed serial number, is constitutional after the Supreme Court's recent decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass'n v. Bruen.”
This is just the latest legal ruling to be influenced by this summer's Bruen decision.
If it is not overturned, this week's West Virginia ruling may have a very tangible and lasting impact on the government's targeting of “ghost guns” — unserialized firearms. For now, the decision can not be used as precedent because the decision was only made by a district court, not a higher one.
If the Liberals want to carry on about “the separation of Church and State,” then that should include the right of a church to determine their own opinion and restrictions, if any, on the possession of weapons, including firearms, within their property lines. It is none of the State’s business.