U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- Several days after the Second Amendment Foundation warned the Mayor of New Orleans against suspending firearms sales in reaction to the COVID-19 outbreak, that organization has hit the New Jersey governor with a federal lawsuit alleging depravation of rights for “shutting down firearms dealerships in the Garden State, thus preventing citizens from exercising their rights under the Second and Fourteenth amendments.”
It may be the first time in history for such a legal action, as panic over the Coronavirus continues.
SAF is joined by the New Jersey Second Amendment Society, on behalf of Robert Kashinsky and Legend Firearms, a gun shop in the state. They are represented by noted civil rights attorney David Jensen at Jensen & Associates in Beacon, N.Y. He is also representing SAF and the Connecticut Citizens Defense League in a federal lawsuit against the state of Connecticut’s prohibition on so-called “high capacity magazines.”
In the New Jersey case, Gov. Phil Murphy and State Police Supt. Patrick J. Callahan are defendants in their official capacities. The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, alleges depravation of rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The case is known as Kashinsky v. Murphy. The complaint may be read here.
The lawsuit contends that Murphy, by issuing Executive Order 107 on March 21, mandated “the closure of all retail businesses that sell firearms or ammunition and of making the portal for firearms background checks unavailable on the website of the New Jersey State Police…amount to a ban on obtaining firearms or ammunition in the State of New Jersey.”
Kashinsky, according to the federal complaint, does not own a firearm, but he recently obtained a Firearms Purchaser Identification card for the purpose of buying a gun out of concern for his ability to protect himself and his wife in the event of an emergency. However, Murphy’s executive order was quickly followed by a notice posted on the State Police background check portal of its website “indicating that the State Police would no longer conduct background checks,” the lawsuit says.
“Gov. Murphy cannot simply suspend the Second Amendment, and neither can Supt. Callahan,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Yet, under this emergency order, that’s exactly what they’re doing. The Constitution, and federal law, don’t allow that.
“New Jersey may have been the first state to ratify the Bill of Rights,” Gottlieb observed. “but they’re the last state to recognize it.”
In 2005 following Hurricane Katrina, SAF and the National Rifle Association took the City of New Orleans to federal court over firearm seizures conducted by the administration of former Mayor Ray Nagin. The court found those gun confiscations—some of which were done at gunpoint—to be unconstitutional.
Recently, when North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared a statewide emergency due to the Coronavirus, SAF reminded officials about the case of Bateman v. Purdue, that prevents suspension of Second Amendment rights during an emergency in that state. The intent was to allow people to venture outside their homes with firearms in the event of a disaster, such as a hurricane.
“We could not have foreseen that our case against North Carolina would ever keep citizens safe in this kind of emergency,” Gottlieb said, “but we are delighted that no public official can arbitrarily render the state’s residents unable to defend themselves on the grounds of a declared emergency. That’s the time when honest citizens might need their firearms the most while away from home.”
Just days ago, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed an emergency order that actually exempts firearm and ammunition distributors and retailers from any shutdown, recognizing them instead as “essential businesses…for the purposes of safety and security.” SAF applauded the governor.
The New Jersey lawsuit could put other states on notice about trying to shut down the exercise of Second Amendment rights. Most state constitutions also have right-to-bear-arms provisions, and they are often more protective than the Second Amendment.
About Dave Workman
Dave Workman is a senior editor at TheGunMag.com and Liberty Park Press, author of multiple books #add on the Right to Keep & Bear Arms and formerly an NRA-certified firearms instructor.
This and much more than this NEEDS to happen to EVERYONE who would delay or deny ANY free American citizen their GOD given, constitutionally protected RIGHT to keep and bear arms. We NEED more people, enforcement and lawyers who will arrest and prosecute ANYBODY and EVERYBODY that legislates, judges, lawyers, enforces or finances any and every law that is unconstitutional. We NEED judges, righteous judges who will uphold the constitution and ALL it’s built upon. IF, and it’s a big IF, this can be done successfully there is potential of NOT needing to do battle to get our rights, our… Read more »
The PEOPLE created governments. Governments get away with this crap because Americans are far too fat and lazy to gather 10,000 armed citizens and appear at the capitol and demand these unconstitutional and anti-constitutional ‘laws’ be removed…OR ELSE! THAT is our Constitutional Right & Duty. You want it stopped? Have Americans do their Duty. Hell, the rats won’t even vote! We are here because of more than a century of Americans allowing the governments to do anything they wanted, without so much as a single citizen affirming resistance and power OVER government. On this board I saw an uneducated jackass… Read more »
@T T J; Like every oppressed society, like every boiling pot of flammables, there is a moment of spontaneous ignition. Some 245 years ago this spring, the British attempted arms control. The pot of angry, mistreated, abused people was at flash point and the British attempted to deny them the LAST MEANS OF DEALING WITH CORRUPT GOVERNMENT. Guns, firearms, cannon, powder. When cornered, even a mouse will come out swinging. They did not WANT to fight, they were FORCED to fight knowing if they layed down their arms there would be no coming back from the slavery and tyranny that… Read more »
@DB —
And yet, New Yorker’s have chosen “gun control” since 1911 with the Sullivan Act. How one state has been able to flaunt the 2A for so long is beyond me. I remember from my truck driving days, as an owner-operater who booked his own loads, always refusing anything to NY no matter how much it paid. My rig was my castle, and yet, “they” would see to it that it was only a truck with a sleeper on it. Stay well.
Demonstrating after the fact, as was done in Virginia, is what you do after you have failed to get off your fat rear end and VOTE. 40% voter turnout allowed Virginia legislature to have a majority Democrat. 49.9% voter turnout in November 2018 allowed the U.S. House of Representatives to turn Democrat. 28% elected the stupid actress known as AOC to be elected to the Congress from New York. See the pattern? See the result? The demonstration we need is for 124 million gun owners to vote Republican in November 2020. No excuses. Vote…please!
and only 23% of Washington State gun owners bothered to drop their ballot in the mail to vote against I 1539, Bloomie’s latest depraved deprival of our gun rights. I put mine in…. when I went to bed Tuesday night, electioin night, I did not own any “assault weapons’. When I woke up Wednesday I realised I must have slept through the arrival of the Gun Fairy, because I now owned about a dozen of them. Didn’t hear a thing in the night,either. We have half a million active Mother May I Cards here in Washington. If all of those… Read more »
Excellent, SAF.
Don’t forget to join and/or send SAF some money. All they have is us. The anti gun people have Bloomberg and Soros.
“It may be the first time in history for such a legal action, as panic over the Coronavirus continues.”
Bullcrap. It is as Saul Alinsky said…”Never let a crisis go to waste”.
Democrats are feeling their oats, since Americans refuse to stand and defend their Rights, and are intoxicated with the prospect of disarming more Americans, you know, making more slaves.
TTJ: It may be the first time ever for such an order to be challenged under the “Denial of Rights under color of law” federal statute. I couldn’t find anything quite like it while writing the story.
Thanks for reading.
Didn’t quite grasp the essence of the article, did you? Simpler to just babble on like a fool.
That is not from Alinsky. although it COLD have been.
the enemy is with in DO NOT B FOOLED
Mr. Workman,
Thank you a great article and true I read al your articles that are posted here.
Our proudly progressive Governor Phil Murphy is a ardent anti 2A Governor. A few days ago on a live telecast a pro gun person asked the Governor about this issue and he replied rather quickly and deferred to the AG Grewal and NJSP Superintendent , Colonel Callahan on this issue. For whatever reason they have deemed that gun stores are non essential, same for purchases and the NICS system here has been shut down.
The virus choking the NRA to death isn’t named “Corona”. It’s the “LaPierre Virus”, and that infection has gone untreated for decades. Front line staff laid off, salaries cut, while Wayne spends millions of dollars a month of membership funds for his own personal legal defense.
“Non-Profit” my A$$. Indictments are inevitable.
NRA Lays Off Staff, Cuts Salaries As Coronavirus Reduces Revenue
https://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/nra-lays-off-staff-cuts-salaries-as-coronavirus-cuts-into-revenue/
Yep. Until Pierre is gone, the NRA gets no money from me.
Bobtail: That is what I told the gal that called on the NRA’s behalf about a month ago.
Me either he is a cancer on a once good organization
All any of these Governors, Senators, Mayors etc have to remember is 4 little words SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED. To us Law Abiding Gun Owners which are Citizens of the United States these 4 words mean that any law that infringes on any of our rights to keep and bear arms is an illegal law.
Every person who holds public office should be required to read and understand the Constitution of the United states and then sign a document stating that they do, and will follow it to the letter.
Further, if they fail to do so, would mean immediate removal from that office.
Taking an oath should mean more than just repeating some words to get what you want.
Make passing a closed book test on the US COnstitutoin a prerequisite for filing for any public office Anyone flunking cannot toss their hat in the ring until next election season.
depravation of rights
First time I let it pass, figuring a typo. Second time, must be a misunderstanding.
depravation, deprivation.. sound similar asmost often pronounced bu t have very different meanings.
Look at the one vowel, the “i” or “a”. Go back to the root deprive, deprave. The first means to deny, remove. Second means to pervert, corrupt. In this instance, both apply, as the depraved are attempting to deprive.. But the legal term is to deprive, as in, take away, remove, deny, steal.
Go git ’em. Make em pay.
This must continue to happen everytime an American communist tyrant tries to create these anti-constitutional laws.
Go get ’em SAF! Make an example of these anti-constitutionalists same as they would us!
Lawsuits are the only thing crooked politicians and bureaucrats understand. They must be permanently removed from office as enemies of the Constitution and for the illegal actions they perpetrate on the American people. It costs them nothing to be wrong and there are no consequences. If these govenment officials had to pay for their own defense, fines and jail time, they would think twice about violating their oath.
Our system is rigged and these vipers know how to work it.
As long as anti-gunners hold law-abiding citizen gun owners and gun ownership in contempt, as though they were criminals, fighting for our rights will be very handicapped. Wait a moment, now that I just remembered, many Democratic runned municipalities are doing all sorts of pro-perp maneuvers, from no-bail for “non-violent” crimes to releasing inmates from prisons, etc. So, they revile us greater than real criminals. As long as the gun rights organizations don’t lobby for anti-perp laws ie. mandatory strict sentencing for criminal misuse of firearms, ditto for irresponsible gun handling and negligent storage of firearms in presence of irresponsible… Read more »
Why not this one? 18 U.S. Code § 242 – Deprivation of rights under color of law
Ryben: I think the difference here is the statute you cite is a criminal offense, while the statute cited in the *civil* lawsuit is the civil offense. I’ve learned to not second-guess a SAF legal challenge. The attorney’s with whom SAF works are pretty sharp guys who know their stuff.
Thanks for reading.
@DW, Spot on, again.
Exactly, Dave. This suit is to reverse the denial of rights to everyone, as now exists with the guv’s illegal pronouncement. Individuals specifically harmed can file criminal complaints under 18 USC, trouble is, New Jersey”s rotten and corrupt AtG Grewel will be the one to prosecute.. and good luck with that. They both should be removed from office under feliny perjury for swearing teir oath of office and refusing to uphold it.
2AF have done well going after, as priority ONe, the present denial of rights to all in New Jersey.
@Tionico – Isn’t state supported deprivation of rights a federal crime, which would be prosecuted by a federal prosecutor? As such state AG Grewel would be a subject rather than prosecutor.
Meanwhile, the Wayne Lapierre fan club is still “pursuing all legal options”! ( https://www.ammoland.com/2020/03/nj-stops-firearms-transfers/#axzz6Hcd48Ypp )
I think it’s pretty obvious that the NRA understands how cheap words are…..
Again, an uneducated stooge is doing the work of the anti-gun communist democrats.
Too bad you didn’t check on the NRA-ILA board.
Dance, useful idiot, DANCE!
TTJ) Just checked… AGAIN!!! the very word “jersey” isn’t anywhere on the page, you big fat liar with your pants on fire!
@tt, You are spoiling your chances of getting into the diplomatic corps.
As usual, the NRA is attaching its name to someone else’s work. NRA will never get another nickel from me. I support SAF and TSRA (Texas State Rifle Assn.)
BB; Did you read the news article about the NRA Lay-Offs, wage cuts because of Donated Money not there? Oh and POOR WAYNE is taking a cut also but no mention of how much though!!!!!!!!!
This junk smacks of similarity to Pelosi’s porked up stimulus package. The liberal democRATS are adding their wishes that have NOTHING to do with Chinavirus to legislation that purports to help cure the malady.
A typical democRAT , that’s RAT, sneak. Remember in November !
With regards to Prizker I would not pat him on the back that fast, He is protecting his family investments, beware of the wolf’s in sheeps clothing…
The bigger problem with all this is murphey will get a slap on the wrist and the deep blue state full of RATS will forget it happened &re-elect him or some other pos just like him. New jersey sucks because asshat voters get the hillary clone they want no matter what. Christie was no prize either, just a pos RINO.
Sorry for the mis-spell of Pritzker….
The NJ Governor is lying to you and me. And in a further shrug off, Murphy said political statements aside, ‘no one has personally complained to him about gun shops being closed.’ In the last statement the Governor is lying. I can personally attest to it. I have had 89 customers call his office directly at 609 292 6000 extension 4 and or 609 292 8740. They also wrote to him at NJ.GOV/GOVERNOR asking specifically, “why is a Liquor store essential and a gun shop is not.” They are DEMANDING as Residents, Taxpayers, and Voters that the gun shops reopen.… Read more »