The Supreme Court is likely to expand gun rights in New York after several justices expressed concern over the state's high bar requiring 'proper cause' to obtain a concealed carry permit.
Gun rights advocates presented their arguments Wednesday to the nation's highest court, which hasn't taken up a Second Amendment case in more than a decade, challenging the state's law.
The hearing revealed a push for a solution to balance gun rights and public safety.
Justices John Roberts, Neil Gorsuch, Samuel Alito, Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh expressed concern over the state's high bar requiring 'proper cause' to obtain a concealed carry permit.
'Why isn't it good enough to say I live in a violent area and I want to defend myself?' Justice Kavanaugh asked.
Roberts raised concern over the current language of the law that requires proof of threat in rural areas, as they are also public places.
'How many muggings take place in a forest?' he said.
Several Supreme Court justices have indicated they are opposed to New York state's restrictive law that limits carrying concealed handguns in public
Under the current rules, the state can use its discretion when evaluating a person's reason for applying for a permit.
For example, a person claiming to feel unsafe but failing to provide detail of a specific danger or threat would likely be denied.
Justice Alito also wondered why only 'celebrities, state judges and retired police officers' should be able to carry concealed guns, and not ordinary citizens.
'How is that consistent with the core right to self-defense?' he asked.
Meanwhile, New York Solicitor Barbara Underwood emphasized the need to regulate concealed guns to promote public safety, saying that allowing a proliferation of firearms in New York City's subway system 'terrifies a great many people.'
Alito pointed out that there already are people illegally carrying guns on subways and streets.
'But the ordinary hard-working, law-abiding people ... they can't be armed?' he asked.
Several justices, including John Roberts, Neil Gorsuch, Samuel Alito, Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh, expressed concern over the state's high bar required to obtain a permit
The case, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, involves an appeal by two gun owners and the local affiliate of the National Rifle Association (NRA) after they lost a challenge to state law that requires 'proper cause' for carrying concealed weapons.
But as well as the Second Amendment, attorneys on both sides cited a 700-year-old English law and its influence on the framing of the U.S. Constitution.
And the result - expected by the end of June - could have implications for firearms restrictions across the country.
A ruling invalidating the current law could prompt legal questions surrounding how and when local governments can regulate firearms in sensitive places.
Liberal and conservative justices challenged Paul Clement, representing the challengers, on where guns might be off limits in that scenario, including government buildings, public transit, sports stadiums, schools, university campuses, sites of
