Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

NYC’s “Desperate Attempt” to Delay Proceedings in Gun Rights Case Rejected by Supreme Court

Friday, May 3, 2019

NYC’s “Desperate Attempt” to Delay Proceedings in Gun Rights Case Rejected by Supreme Court

Earlier this week, the United States Supreme Court refused to grant a request by the City of New York to delay the proceedings in the NRA-supported appeal of New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n, Inc. v. City of New York (No. 15-683).

The case arises out of a challenge to New York City’s notoriously restrictive handgun licensing scheme.

Generally, New York state law prohibits even the possession of a handgun in the home without a license. A licensee in New York City must comply with additional and specific restrictions. A license is “not transferable to any other person or location,” and anyone with a “premises license” is prohibited from removing the handgun “from the address specified on the license.” However, because the rules also require licensees to “endeavor to engage in periodic handgun practice,” an exception at 38 R.C.N.Y. § 5-23(a)(3) allows a licensee to transport a handgun “to and from an authorized small arms range/shooting club.” This narrow exception applies only to seven ranges located in New York City. It restricts the travel to a direct route to and from the range, and requires the handgun to be transported unloaded, in a locked container, and separate from any ammunition. Licensees who wish to take their guns to other ranges or participate in events or competitions outside New York City, or who want to transport their guns to another location (other than the NYC address listed on the license), are prohibited from doing so.         

In January, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the appeal in this case. The petitioners, individual licensees and the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association (NYSRPA), argue that, apart from the “precisely zero empirical evidence” provided by the City to justify its licensing rules as a public safety measure, these “extreme, unjustified and irrational” transport and travel restrictions on lawfully owned handguns violate the Second Amendment, the Commerce Clause, and the fundamental right to travel.

Understandably, the case has attracted a great deal of attention, representing an opportunity for the Supreme Court to again address the scope of Second Amendment rights and to resolve the question of the correct analytical framework in the wake of the Heller case more than a decade ago.

However, on April 12, counsel for the City of New York and the New York City Police Department (NYPD) filed a motion with the Supreme Court seeking to suspend the proceedings, based on a new proposal to change the NYC handgun rules. The motion indicates that the NYPD has published a “Notice of Public Hearing and Opportunity to Comment on Proposed Rule,” which should set in motion a process that (after a public comment period and a public hearing) might result in a future change in the licensing rules. 

This notice is clear that the proposed rulemaking is motivated by the NYSRPA litigation, with the hope – as expressed in the April 12 motion – that should the proposal be adopted, it could render the Supreme Court appeal moot and lead to its dismissal.  

However, even assuming this proposed rule would pass into law as drafted, it represents only a limited modification to existing 38 R.C.N.Y. § 5-23(a). The proposal would not rescind the restraints already in place (and at issue in the appeal), but would allow a premises licensee to transport a handgun listed on their license to: (1) another premises of the licensee “where the licensee is authorized to have and possess a handgun;” (2) a small-arms range/shooting club authorized by law to operate as such, whether located within or outside New York City; and (3) a shooting competition at which the licensee may possess the handgun “consistent with the law applicable at the place of the competition.” All of these retain the requirement that the handgun be transported unloaded, in a locked container, with ammunition being “carried separately,” and that the licensee travel “directly” to and from these additional locations. Indeed, the proposed rule adds a new requirement to these provisions, that any transport within New York City must be “continuous and uninterrupted.”

Counsel for the petitioners responded to the City’s “extraordinary request” by indicating there is no good reason to grant an “indefinite hold.” The City’s motion is, at best, premature given the uncertain status of the proposed amendment, and the amendment itself is at odds with the City’s forceful defense of the existing rules as both necessary and constitutional. Even if passed, the rule changes would be insufficient to moot the case, as the City’s legal authority to impose such transport requirements, or “forbid or permit action beyond city and state borders,” are among the questions before the Court. The rulemaking proposal is nothing more than “a nakedly transparent effort to evade [the Supreme] Court’s review.”

As NRA-ILA’s Executive Director Chris W. Cox put it, “The City of New York did not respect its citizens’ Second Amendment rights before the Supreme Court granted review in this case and it will not respect them going forward. We are confident that the Court will reject New York’s desperate attempt to avoid review of its blatantly unconstitutional laws.”

Consistent with his prediction, on April 29, the Court declined to grant the motion. A date for oral arguments has not been set, but the petitioners are due to file their opening brief with the Court this month.

Your NRA will continue to keep you informed on the progress of this important litigation.

 

TRENDING NOW
United Nation’s Attack on Ammunition Formally Begins

News  

Monday, July 7, 2025

United Nation’s Attack on Ammunition Formally Begins

The recently concluded negotiations on the United Nations’ Global Framework on Through-Life Conventional Ammunition Management (Framework) should be of grave concern to anyone who values the constitutional protections afforded by the Second Amendment. 

U.K. Embarks on Fresh Knife Amnesty, Reminds Americans Why 1776 was a Good Idea

News  

Monday, July 7, 2025

U.K. Embarks on Fresh Knife Amnesty, Reminds Americans Why 1776 was a Good Idea

It has been a while since we’ve looked at weapon news from across the pond, but with Americans everywhere having just celebrated the Glorious Fourth and our independence from British monarchy, the timing seems particular ...

NRA and 2A Allies Announce NFA Lawsuit

Monday, July 7, 2025

NRA and 2A Allies Announce NFA Lawsuit

Following the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill”—which eliminates the National Firearms Act of 1934’s (NFA) excise tax on suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and AOWs—the National Rifle Association issued a joint statement along with the ...

President Trump Signs the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” into Law

News  

Friday, July 4, 2025

President Trump Signs the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” into Law

Earlier today, on the 4th of July, a day on which our Founding Fathers declared their intent for a free nation, the President of the United State of America, Donald Trump, signed the “One Big ...

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

News  

Second Amendment  

Thursday, May 22, 2025

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

Earlier today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R.1 the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which included Section 2 of the Hearing Protection Act, completely removing suppressors from the National Firearms Act (NFA).

Congress Passes the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” Now Headed to President Trump

News  

Thursday, July 3, 2025

Congress Passes the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” Now Headed to President Trump

Earlier today the U.S. House of Representatives passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” This bill contained a provision that would, among other things, eliminate the burdensome $200 excise tax imposed by federal law on suppressors, short-barreled firearms, ...

Maine: Public University Professor Belittles Student for 2A and Religious Views

Wednesday, July 2, 2025

Maine: Public University Professor Belittles Student for 2A and Religious Views

Maine's public education system has recently faced national scrutiny, and it appears things are only getting worse, not better, in the Pine Tree State. 

Progress in the Fight to Protect the Firearms Industry and Gun Owners from Financial Discrimination

News  

Monday, July 7, 2025

Progress in the Fight to Protect the Firearms Industry and Gun Owners from Financial Discrimination

In June, the American firearms industry lodged a resounding victory against attempts by gun control advocates to put it out of business with frivolous lawsuits when the U.S. Supreme Court issued its 9-0 ruling in Smith & Wesson ...

HAPPY 100TH BIRTHDAY, NORRIS N. JERNIGAN!

Take Action  

Monday, July 7, 2025

HAPPY 100TH BIRTHDAY, NORRIS N. JERNIGAN!

As we celebrate this remarkable milestone for this remarkable man, we honor the life and legacy of Norris N. Jernigan, a World War II veteran who served in the intelligence office with the 393rd Bomb Squadron of the ...

Maine: Lawmakers Call for Anti-2A Progressive Professor to Be Fired

Tuesday, July 8, 2025

Maine: Lawmakers Call for Anti-2A Progressive Professor to Be Fired

In case you missed the media firestorm last week, a progressive professor at Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor, Maine, has come under fire for her emails belittling a student for her religious beliefs and views ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.