January, 27 2011, 12:52pm EDT
Brady Center Urges Court to Dismiss Lawsuit Challenging NJ's Guns in Public Laws
WASHINGTON
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
late yesterday filed a brief in federal court in New Jersey urging the
dismissal of a lawsuit seeking to strike down New Jersey laws
regulating the carrying of loaded guns in public. The Brady Center brief explains that New Jersey's strong gun laws have helped the state achieve one of the lowest gun death rates in the nation, less than half the national average.
The lawsuit brought by the Second Amendment Foundation, Inc. and the Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs, Inc. challenges
New Jersey laws that require that people seeking to carry loaded guns
in public have a "justifiable need" to do so. Courts around the country
have upheld similar laws, rejecting lawsuits claiming that the Second
Amendment allows a right to carry loaded guns in public.
"The Second Amendment allows
states and communities to restrict the carrying of loaded guns on
their streets and in their parks and playgrounds. And that makes
sense," said Brady Center President Paul Helmke. "The recent events in
Tucson make it clear that the federal court here should join others
around the country that have rejected the gun lobby's attempt to force
all Americans to live under their 'any gun, anywhere' regime."
The Brady Center brief explains that the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decisions in District of Columbia v. Heller and McDonald v. Chicago dealt only with a Second Amendment
right to possess guns in the home for self-defense. The U.S. Supreme
Court held that the Second Amendment right "is not unlimited" and is
subject to "reasonable firearms regulations." The Supreme Court has
said that bans on carrying concealed weapons do not violate the Second
Amendment. Numerous other courts have recently upheld state
restrictions on carrying loaded guns in public.
The lawsuit, Muller v. Maenza, is pending in the United States District Court in New Jersey. The Brady Center's brief was joined by Ceasefire NJ and the New Jersey Million Mom March Chapters of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. The brief was filed by attorneys with the Brady Center and the firm Hogan Lovells US LLP.
Brady United formerly known as The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence and its legislative and grassroots affiliate, the Brady Campaign and its dedicated network of Million Mom March Chapters, is the nation's largest, non-partisan, grassroots organization leading the fight to prevent gun violence. We are devoted to creating an America free from gun violence, where all Americans are safe at home, at school, at work, and in our communities.
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