Supreme Court Takes Up First Gun Case in 10 Years

On Monday, the Supreme Court decided to take up its first Second Amendment case in more than ten years.

The Court decided to take up the case New York State Rifle et. al. v. Corlett, focusing on the question of “Whether the State’s denial of petitioners’ applications for concealed-carry licenses for self-defense violated the Second Amendment.”

Robert Nash and Brandon Koch applied for licenses to carry firearms outside their homes in New York, SCOTUS blog reported. The licensing officer denied their requests after determining that, under New York law, they had “failed to show ‘proper cause’ to carry a firearm in public for the purpose of self-defense, because [they] did not demonstrate a special need for self-defense that distinguished them from the general public.”

Lower courts ruled against Nash and Koch but they, along with the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, asked the Supreme Court to take up the case in order to clarify lower court decisions on the strength of Second Amendment protections outside the home.

This case will give the Supreme Court an opportunity to issue a powerful defense of Second Amendment rights. Yet if the Court does rule in favor of New York Rifle, it will also exacerbate Democratic demands for limits on gun ownership.