Justices will hear details of the case, Gazzola v. Hochul, which was filed by two state gun shops against New York’s new background checks and yearly inspections of firearm retailers.
The law was the fruit of a special session held by state lawmakers last year after the high court ruled in New York Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen. By a 6-3 majority, the bench decided that the Empire State violated the Constitution with its sweeping anti-gun laws.
New York legislators are undaunted, and that puts them back before the Supreme Court on Friday, Oct. 6.
The special session produced the Concealed Carry Improvement Act. This statute established background checks for ammunition to be carried out by state officials. Second Amendment proponents acted quickly, but Justice Sonia Sotomayor declined their petition in the case for a preliminary injunction.
However, Justice Clarence Thomas stepped in and took up the petition. That resulted in Friday’s gathering to determine whether the high court will hear the case.
There is no guarantee this will be the result. Justices could easily decide to let the challenge run its route through the lower courts.
Pushback has been considerable and predictable. Anti-gun states have a pattern of establishing prohibitive measures that are celebrated by political leaders but denounced by those who live in the countryside.
Officials in upstate New York criticized the cumbersome system as ill-conceived and ineffective. Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple labeled the new protocol a nuisance.
“This isn’t going to keep New Yorkers safe,” the president of the state Sheriff’s Association observed. “And again, I think it is more of a reactionary thing.”
He declared that people who commit gun crimes do not acquire their firearms or ammunition legally. As for the background checks, criminals will simply go out of state.
