Photo: Alamy
A New York federal judge struck down recent provisions to the state’s gun law restrictions as unconstitutional last week, citing that the discretionary standards held for applicants by officials were “broad and unrestrained.”
“Each of these provisions allows for the denial of a firearm permit upon a City official’s determination of the applicant’s lack of “good moral character” or upon the official’s finding of “other good cause”—broad and unrestrained discretionary standards which Defendants have not shown to have any historical underpinning in our country,” the ruling stated.
The lawsuit brought to District Judge John P. Cronan was filed last year by Joseph Srour, a Brooklyn man who was twice denied a permit to possess rifles and shotguns within his home.
The New York Police Department argued that they rejected Srour a permit due to his prior arrests, traffic violations, and alleged false statements on applications, according to AP News.
However, Judge Cronan refuted the NYPD’s argument stating that the “magnitude of discretion” that applicants are held to by officials was “unconstitutional,” violating the Constitution’s 2nd and 14th amendments.
“…the Court determines that the magnitude of discretion afforded to New York City licensing officials…empowering them to evaluate an applicant’s “good moral character” and “good cause” in deciding whether to permit that applicant to exercise his or her Second Amendment rights, is not constitutionally permissible under the Second and Fourteenth Amendments,” the ruling continued.
Since Cronan’s ruling, the regulations he ruled to be unconstitutional have been amended, citing that he has not yet ruled on the new wording of the provisions.