On December 22, 2022, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed A4769/S3214 into law, amending a number of New Jersey’s gun laws, including the places in which a person with a permit can carry a handgun.
Acting on the Supreme Court’s language in Bruen that carry in so-called “sensitive places” is likely allowed by the constitution, New Jersey designated 25 different categories as “sensitive places” to restrict the ability of individuals from carrying arms in public for self-defense. Those areas included, among other areas, parks, beaches, recreation facilities and playgrounds, restaurants where alcohol is served, health care facilities, vehicles unless the firearm was unloaded and stored in a container, and most egregiously, all private property, unless posted to the contrary.
Almost immediately after A4769/S3214 was signed into law, the Second Amendment Foundation, joined by three other civil rights organizations and three individuals filed suit challenging the newly enacted laws. The lawsuit asks a federal court to strike down various provisions of the law prohibiting the carriage of firearms in a number of places which are constitutionally impermissible.
Case Team: David H. Thompson, Peter Patterson
Case Documents
To access all of the case documents at the District Court, please visit the docket.
To view documents filed on appeal, please visit the Court of Appeals docket.
Case Media