Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, announcing this morning that Arizona will join attorneys general and governors from 22 other states, asking the US Supreme Court to hear a case surrounding the rights of individuals to carry firearms outside their homes.
The states are asking the court to review a lower court ruling that upheld a New Jersey law which restricts a person’s right to carry a handgun in public for self-defense, unless the person can demonstrate a ‘justifiable need’ to do so.
Thomas R. Rogers is a New Jersey businessman who applied for a handgun carry permit in January 2017. Rogers services ATM machines and carries large amounts of cash as part of his job, often in high-crime areas. Despite passing the required background checks, completing a firearm training course, and meeting all of the other eligibility requirements necessary to obtain a public carry permit, Rogers was denied the exercise of his right to carry because his local police chief decided he did not have a "justifiable need" under New Jersey's law.
Critics of the law argue it conflicts with other federal court decisions in similar cases.
In July 2018, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a Hawaii law similar to New Jersey’s. That court stated that the Second Amendment protects the right to openly bear arms in public for self-defense purposes.
“Your constitutional rights don't end when you walk outside your front door,” said Attorney General Mark Brnovich in a statement. “We have a guaranteed bill of rights in this country, not a bill of needs."
Joining Arizona in the brief are the States of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.