By Matthew Barakat, AP
A federal appeals court on Monday revived a lawsuit challenging Maryland’s rules for obtaining a handgun as unconstitutionally restrictive.
The unanimous ruling from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond reinstates the lawsuit, which was first filed in 2016 and tossed out of court by a federal judge last year.
The lawsuit challenges Maryland’s handgun licensing law, passed in 2013, which requires gun purchasers to complete four hours of safety training in addition to passing background checks, being 21 years old and a Maryland resident.
The case was initially dismissed because the plaintiffs, including the advocacy group Maryland Shall Issue, lacked standing to sue.
But Monday’s ruling determined that one of the plaintiffs — Atlantic Guns, which operates shops in Rockville and Silver Spring — had standing to sue. The gun shop had argued that it lost business because of the rules and that its customers suffered under the licensing scheme.
The case now goes back to district court for a trial on the merits.
The opinion was written by Judge G. Steven Agee and joined by judges Julius Richardson and Barbara Milano Keenan. Agee and Richardson were appointed by Republican presidents, while Keenan was appointed by a Democrat.
Mark Pennak, president of Maryland Shall Issue, said he is pleased with the ruling and not at all surprised after witnessing oral arguments and seeing the appellate judges’ skepticism about the district court’s ruling.
He said the licensing requirements add hundreds of dollars in costs and significant amounts of time to acquire a license.
“It’s an astonishing burden,” he said.
Raquel Coombs, a spokeswoman for Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh, a Democrat, said the ruling is under review and declined further comment Monday.
The requirement for training applies to handguns, not hunting rifles or shotguns.
The 2013 law that passed in the aftermath of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut in December 2012 was one of the nation’s toughest. Other parts of the law, including a ban on certain types of rifles and high-capacity magazines, have faced separate challenges but have been upheld.
Best I can tell, there’s no relief from the courts anymore. Prove me wrong.
I can’t argue that.
Impossible, cases can be cited going back to the late 30’s supporting your challenge on firearms alone. 100% accurate statement is 100% accurate.
This comment is more about Moms Demand Action, pictured above.
I know Moms that own guns, who go out shooting, and who support the 2A.
Those Moms demand action, also. They demand infringements be removed.
The MDA moms are not the majority.
They are a noisy, well-funded minority whose organization would disintegrate if they had to fund it themselves.
Maybe they should change the name to Karen’s Demand Attention.
Maybe they should change the name to Mom’s Prostituting themselves.
Lifesavor,
Although you tailored your statements narrowly enough so that, in of themselves, they are correct. They are misleading in distilling a macro argument down to a micro of Moms you know vs MDA moms.
The truth of the matter, in the macro, is that the Democrats are behind almost all serious gun control, and behind the Democrats are the female vote. Without which the Democratic party in its current state would collapse.
Although I understand your sentiment, and applaud those Moms you know, if the battle is to be won, then “freedom women” need to begin to have serious deep conversations with moms/women who continue to support gun control Democrats.
—–OR—– (And this will be fun) declare the 19th amendment a failed experiment and repeal it on August 18th, 2020, which would be ironically,100 years to the day since its ratification.
Some say the Republic has suffered enough under this failed amendment and it deserves the same fate as the 18th (Prohibition) amendment. Again ironically both amendments were passed largely due to the lobbying efforts of the “Karens” of that period. Women’s “suffrage” produced both the 18th and 19th amendments.
I have to disagree with you, at least in part.
Moms, Dads, and any other people who want their voices heard, have to invest time and effort into being heard. With Soros and other rich sobs actively FUNDING liberal causes, lots of people can afford to invest their time and effort into being heard.
Meanwhile, working mothers and fathers have to do something constructive to earn a living. They can’t invest the time and effort required to be heard in the state capitals so easily.
Tell me: how many of those “protestors” in Portland and Seattle do you think are gainfully employed? At age twenty, I might have worked a productive job all day, then protested late into the night. At age 30, I would have had to cut it back some. At 50, I could work all day, but I would only be willing to offer moral support to the protestors. Today? I have almost zero energy to waste on activities outside of work.
Get Soros and Bloomberg out of the picture, and all that crap will fall off drastically. Someone has to feed all those fools.
Thomas
My wife and I know many moms who believe the demanding moms are full of it but are in the same situation that Paul speaks of.i have much the same problem work and many other obligations. If I was independently wealthy things would be different. Where is the mega rich donor to help our side?
That is one haggard looking Karen,er Demanding Commie Mommy.
That picture is next to “angry feminist” in my dictionary. Not sure about anyone elses.
I wouldn’t argue that take. Ooof !
More like “Soros Pays us to Bitch”
You are wrong. In many states the Moms Demand Action types ARE the majority. But so what? Our system was designed to protect us from “The tyranny of the majority”.
If a majority of the population wants to infringe on your rights it doesn’t make it right.
“If a majority of the population wants to infringe on your rights it doesn’t make it right.”
Courts won’t make it right either.
Soros demands action.
Breitbart is carrying a story about a rookie police officer who used his training to revive a baby who stopped breathing. The story also describes describes two other recent incidents in which police officers saved the lives of infants. Yeah, let’s defund these people
Sorry I could not paste in the url; my phone is mis-behaving. Karma. I guess.
Likely google or facebook. Not sure why karma would not want you to post a feel good link. Unless karma is another leftist website I dont know about? 😛
Few people doubt that there are a lot of good cops out there. I join those who doubt that the good cops are doing enough to weed out the bad cops. That “thin blue line” crap irritates me to death. They defend their bad cops too much. Defending a bad cop puts a heckuva taint on all the good cops.
There should be a Gun Rights Matter Movement where Gun Control Zealots are arrested and tried for attempting to end the Second Amendment with an agenda that is rooted in racism and genocide.
Gun Control is a racist and nazi based agenda therefore it is wrong to ever give Gun Control standing. To do so at any level condones a key component of racism and genocide.
Debbie W.
GOA, CCRKBA, Second Amendment Foundation…
BTW, keep hammering away on the racist roots of gun control.
She is correct and the Democrat party is the originator of racism, they built it.
They built the original platform.
This is the way we win. We MUST play their game. Cancel culture will only stop once it’s been shown to go too far. Gun control, is, the ONLY remaining vestige of racism in this country. Systemic racism is alive and well in Gun control movements.
As all gun control is un Constitutional,Maryland’s is certainly un Constitutional.
Okay, that’s a positive, small but important step toward an actual trial on the merits.
Wow, that wonder if Illinois can get some of this action? 16 hours initial, 8 hours every 5 years after that, plus over $300 each time.
Wow!
I knew that Illinois was restrictive…just not how restrictive!
$150 for the renewal your three hours of Instructor-led class / range time for another $150±
Montana has it’s issues…but, our CWP (Concealed Weapons Permit) process is MUCH better than the shafting Illinois gives it’s citizens. I’m due in January 2021 and the renewal will be $25 for 4 years. You can submit your completed paperwork up to 90 days prior to expiration. A short visit to the S.O. …give them the filled out form and cheque, they conduct their records check and send me my renewed CWP in about a week.
NH’s only $10 for 4 years. Not needed since 2017, unless one goes through school zones and wants to comply with the obscure and thoroughly useless federal law.
$10…I like that.
Constitutional carry is even better…our Democrat Governor (Steve Bullock) has vetoed every less-restrictive firearm law passed by the Legislature for years…now the bastich is running for the Senate. Smug, smirking Democrat (search for photos of him – every one has that condescending smirk) who gave his brother millions of dollars in State projects…I’ll take “What is Nepotism for $2000, Alex”
In Maryland our HQL (Handgun Qualification License) is required for the mere purchase and ownership of a Handgun, the training, fingerprinting, and fees adding $100s to acquiring a Handgun. As is stated on the Card one receives it is NOT a carry-permit, that privilege is only extended to those who can convince the State Police that they have a “Good & Substantial” reason to be armed outside of the home. Strangely enough any Handgun over 50 years of age is exempt from this HQL requirement.
From my earlier post on a different article. Seems to fit hear just as well.
I find it humorous that different factions of the Liberal democrat party. Are using their separate agendas to defeat each other. The BLM/Antifa movement is out to Defund/Eliminate the Police. Through the use of violence. Which strikes fear into citizens. Who have never owned a firearm. To consider buying or buying one for the first time. While the Gun Grabber faction works to instill fear by claiming firearms are the great Evil and must be Controlled/Eliminated from Society. What once was one of the strongest elements of the Liberal democrat party. Divide and Conquer through Fear. Has become the greatest tool in their defeat. Their own Factions working to eliminate each other. With the use of Fear.
That’s not how you use periods, bud. Half of those should be commas, or be removed entirely. What you ended up doing there was making a bunch of sentence fragments by slicing your sentences in half with a period between the clauses.
Grammar Nazi’s are as much of the problem as people who ignore facts. If that’s the best you got. Begone Troll.
We have grammer so people can understand what you’re saying. I found your post to be difficult to read due to all the sentence fragments. If you want your message heard, it’s incumbant on you to format your posts so they can be read.
#SpellingMatters
I stopped reading half way through.
I’m afraid you need to see a doctor. Your prostate problem is spreading from peeing to your writing.
Borrowed from a poster on a different site. Seems to sum up what we’re up against.
The Dichotomy of the troubled Liberal Mind: ~ If a dude pretends to be a woman, you are required to pretend with him ~ Somehow it’s un-American and racist for the census to count how many Americans are in America ~ Foreign interference in our elections is bad, but illegal aliens voting in our elections is good. ~ Crowded, violent “protests” are encouraged, but singing in church is a public health violation ~ Sexualizing children is bad, but 11-year-old drag queens are good ~ Illegal aliens aren’t required to show ID, but American citizens can’t buy cough medicine without it. ~ People who have never owned slaves should pay reparations to people who have never been slaves ~ Inflammatory rhetoric is outrageous, but harassing people in restaurants is virtuous. ~ Acknowledging gender is bad, but we have to have a woman for Joe Biden’s V.P. running mate. ~ $5 billion for border security is too expensive, but $1.5 trillion for “free” health care for illegal aliens is not. ~ Believing that ALL LIVES MATTER is racist, but #BlackLivesMatter is celebrated ~ Checking gov’t ID to buy cigarettes is good, but checking gov’t ID at the voting booth is racist xenophobic ~ Liberals say never hold all of groups responsible for the actions of a few – but it’s OK to smear and generalize all police officers because of one cop BTW – Pointing out any of this hypocrisy is racist and xenophobic
What did any of that have to do with guns?
It’s all a part of a mind set of requiring people to follow a dogma that has little basis in reality. Based on emotional responses to perceived injustices. Rather than on any form of Intellectual Facts. Just like those opposed to the 2nd A. Their desires are based on emotional responses rather than facts. Once you understand what the Liberal leadership has known since the 60’s. That their acolytes are driven by emotional responses rather than factual responses. It’s much easier to manipulate their emotions rather educate them.
That’s all perfectly normal leftist doublethink. They are able to hold two antagonistic views as long as each of those views helps them to more power.
I know a Maryland resident who spent 6 weeks just to get a handgun. The covid shit hit and he was stuck for another week waiting. Had to go out of state to get 17 round mags. Can t even carry it. So much money spent.
He doesn’t feel like an American, he feels like a foreigner instead.
“He said the licensing requirements add hundreds of dollars in costs and significant amounts of time to acquire a license.
“It’s an astonishing burden,” he said.”
The question to ask is, would it be appropriate to charge fees or take a test to vote, another civil right? And why not?
We have an update on the Lebanon port explosion –
“Later in the evening Lebanon’s Prime Minister announced that the explosions were caused by an estimated 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate left unsecured for 6 years in a warehouse.”
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/trump-says-beirut-explosion-attack-bomb-some-kind-after-briefed-generals
OK, that’s not out of the realm of possibilities, based on past accidents involving AmNitrate fertilizer – It’s manufactured as a ‘prill’, like small ball-beaings, and stored in warehouses on concrete floors in big piles. If you don’t use it in a short period of time, it begins to cake and ‘set up’ into firm lumps. It can get so bad, workers swinging pickaxes are unable to break it up. So, believe it or not, firms that manufactured it started using *dynamite* to break it up. *The folks who made it were using that technique to make it flowable*.
Until one day in Germany, when a small mountain in a fertilizer factory *detonated*, leaving a crater. Check out the picture, it’s worth it :
“How Not to Do It: Breaking up Ammonium Nitrate”
https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2017/03/03/how-not-to-do-it-breaking-up-ammonium-nitrate
The pic :
https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Oppau-768×576.jpg
But here’s the strange part of the Lebanon detonation – There are now about 6 or more videos of the event. People just so happend to point their smartphones in one specific direction to capture the entire explosion on video.
Yeah, not a coincidence, methinks… 🙂
I follow your train of thought on the how. I learned to make explosives using ammonium nitrate 50+ years ago from my Ol’Man. He learned from the agriculture service in the 30’s to blow tree stumps on the farm. Can be some wicked stuff. Especially 2000 lbs.+. I have seen 8-10 videos from several services. I think most of them were watching after the initial explosion and plume As well as the resulting smaller explosions that did look like fireworks. The big one took out the multi story building on the right where the Ammonium nitrate was stored. Stupid people playing Stupid games winning Stupid prizes.
Given the size of the city and the VAST number of cell phones in existence, only 6? I think the tin foil may be a bit to tight.
You go ahead and put your faith in courts and judges, who are part of the same hypocrisy as the rest of the politicians.
Deep down inside, and maybe not so deep, all judges are like Roberts, just biding their time until they can stab us in the back.
If we can get 4 more years out of Trump that means that RBG is gone and very likely Briar along with her. That means seven to two, or six to three if Roberts completely jumps ship.
Roberts has already jumped ship and Ginsberg will still vote after she’s dead. She is, after all, a Democrat.
SCOTUS will not help us.
I’m surprised they couldn’t find one (or many) plaintiffs in Maryland who had applied for, but been denied, a carry license.
This isn’t about carry. The case is about the qualifications and administrative hoops and fees the average citizen has to go through merely to purchase a handgun.
In a sane world it shouldn’t be hard at all to find any hurdle “constitutionally restrictive” against “shall not be infringed” but we are neck deep in clown world so anything goes.
Atlantic Guns is my neighborhood gun shop. Most excellent to see they’re the fulcrum for this important case. They are great guys and hopefully a favorable result will help to create a domino effect for states with similar issues.
Our judicial branch has been hijacked by the looney, far, far left. Look no further than the hypocrisy of the ruling of requiring states allow abortions during the lock down but denying attending church. First isn’t a right, second is protected under 1st amendment.
Our legislative branch is broken. Politicians have openly called for the destruction of our country which is treason and yet they are still in office.
The last remaining bastion of sanity is the executive branch. I fear we will lose that through outright theft come nov 4th.
All this is why the concerted attacks on our 2nd amendment have happened. The school shootings. The riots. The defund the police bs. The covid virus, bought and paid for with our tax dollars. All planned and financed to strip us of our rights and resources because a few wrinkled up old prunes and their off spring want to rule the friggin world. Laugh if you want to but you know I’m right. Just look at who’s driving the train; Soros, Pelosi, Clintons, Gates. The media is related by blood or business or both. The feds are in bed with them. We are well and truly screwed.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter what happens in Richmond. They’ll do like they did to Flynn, ask for an en banc review by the entire court and the Maryland appointees will determine that Maryland law is not an infringement at all.
Of course, that would set up a SCOTUS challenge… but that would be useless if Biden wins.
Keep the celebratory beverages in their casks, let them age a bit more. Nothing is happening anytime soon.
I felt a lot better and a lot more free after I made the decision to disregard gun laws altogether and just build and own whatever I wanted.
In a few more years the distinction won’t even matter. Your kid’s single shot .22 Cricket will be just as illegal as a integrally suppressed parts-kit STEN built on an exhaust pipe receiver. At that point, who cares about whether or not machineguns are illegal?
purge time is fast approaching!
Comments are closed.