High Court Declines to Hear Challenge to New York Gun Law
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iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court on Monday turned back a challenge to a law in New York state that requires people to prove they have a special need for self-protection in order to seek a permit to carry a gun in public.
As is generally the case in these matters, the justices did not comment on why they rejected the challenge.
The high court’s decision not to wade into this particular gun rights issue thus leaves it up to individual states to determine if residents should be restricted in carrying firearms in public for self-defense.
The vast majority of states don’t have bans on carrying handguns outside the home as long as owners have a permit.
Only New York, California, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts and New Jersey require residents to prove a special need for self-protection.
It was last November that the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York upheld a challenge to the law brought by five New Yorkers.
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