The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Americans have the right to carry firearms in public expanding gun rights and striking down a New York law regarding public carry.
The 6-3 decision by SCOTUS justices was made in wake of the tragic shootings in Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, New York. The decision is expected to allow more citizens to legally carry a firearm in public and will affect nearly a fourth of the U.S. population who occupy the states that this decision will affect.
Justice Clarence Thomas made a statement on behalf of the majority who enacted the decision stating that the Constitution protects “an individual’s right to carry a handgun for self-defense outside the home.”
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported:
In their decision, the justices struck down a New York law requiring people to demonstrate a particular need for carrying a gun in order to get a license to carry one in public. The justices said that requirement violates the Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms.”
California, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island all have similar laws. The Biden administration had urged the justices to uphold New York’s law.
Governor of New York Kathy Hochul said that the decision came at a terrible time for the state as New York was still mourning the lives of the 10 people that were killed in the Buffalo supermarket shooting. Hochul said “This decision isn’t just reckless. It’s reprehensible. It’s not what New Yorkers want.”
This decision on public carry is the major gun decision the Supreme Court has made in over a decade. The last being a 2010 decision paired with a ruling from 2008 that established a nationwide right to possess a firearm at home for self-defense.
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