In 2023, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham issued an executive order declaring gun violence a “public health emergency” and banning the carry of firearms in various locations throughout the state.
The National Rifle Association, along with many New Mexico Legislators, the Republican Party of New Mexico, the Libertarian Party of New Mexico, gun shop owners, and retired law enforcement officers, filed a lawsuit arguing that the governor’s order exceeded the scope of New Mexico’s Public Health Emergency Response Act.
Today, the Supreme Court of New Mexico held in a 3–2 decision that the governor did not exceed her authority by issuing the order, since nothing in state law precludes gun violence from qualifying as a public health emergency.
Two justices dissented from the ruling, expressing concern over the governor’s ability to impose restrictions through emergency orders that could not be imposed through the democratic process—especially in unextraordinary circumstances.
Notably, this case concerned only the governor’s emergency powers and her authority to issue the emergency order; it did not consider the constitutionality of the order under either the Second Amendment or New Mexico’s state constitutional right to keep and bear arms.
The case is Amdor v. Grisham.
Please stay tuned to www.nraila.org for future updates on NRA-ILA’s ongoing efforts to defend your constitutional rights, and please visit https://www.nraila.org/legal-legislation/current-litigation/ to keep up to date on NRA-ILA’s ongoing litigation efforts.
More Like This From Around The NRA
