(Bloomberg) — New York asked a federal appeals court to prevent an order overturning firearms bans in Times Square and other public places from going into effect.
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State Attorney General Letitia James on Monday filed a motion with the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals to stay a lower-court decision issued last week that found many of the state’s gun restrictions unconstitutional. Such a stay would remain in effect while the state formally appeals the ruling.
US District Judge Glenn Suddaby in Syracuse, New York, on Oct. 6, ruled that several provisions of a gun law passed in July violated the constitutional right to bear arms. The Concealed Carry Improvement Act, which greatly expanded the number of public places where guns were banned, was enacted in response to the US Supreme Court’s decision overturning the state’s previous restrictions on concealed-carry permits.
“This common-sense gun control legislation is critical in our state’s effort to reduce gun violence,” James said in a statement. “We will continue to fight for the safety of everyday New Yorkers.”
Suddaby said that banning guns from Times Square, public transportation, bars, sports stadiums and a host of other public places was impermissible because there was no historical basis for those restrictions. In finding the transportation ban unconstitutional, the judge noted 19th century Kentucky and Tennessee laws that specifically permitted the carrying of concealed weapons “on a journey.”
He did allow restrictions to remain on government buildings, polling places, schools and other places where he said guns had been historically prohibited.
Suddaby, a George W. Bush appointee, also said that the state’s demand that applicants disclose their social-media accounts for the previous three years had no historical basis.
In Monday’s filing, James’s office said the new law was “status quo”, and Suddaby’s ruling would lead to “confusing and inconsistent” enforcement of the law if allowed to go in effect.
“Exposing 18 million New Yorkers to a heightened risk of gunfire severely outweighs any prejudice to plaintiffs here from a stay,” the state said.
The case is Antonyuk v. Hochul, 22-2379, 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeal (New York).
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