By Isabella Burke, NJ State House News Service
New Jersey is free to enforce some of the nation’s most restrictive gun laws at schools, parks and elsewhere after a federal court upheld the state’s firearms ban in most public places.
The case has its roots in a June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that invalidated states’ rules against concealed carrying of guns. In December 2022, Governor Phil Murphy, seeking to counteract that decision, signed a law defining where weapons wouldn’t be permitted.
That included classrooms, playgrounds, stadiums, beaches, parks and government buildings. The legislation quickly drew challenges from gun rights groups, which argued that the rules trampled the Second Amendment.
One case, Siegel/Koons vs. Platkin, wound through the courts for three years. On Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd District handed Murphy and state Attorney General Matt Platkin a win: The law stands.
Murphy, in a news release, called the ruling a “major victory for common-sense firearm laws.”
“Every New Jerseyan deserves to feel safe and free from harm in public spaces — whether in a classroom, at a youth sporting event, or enjoying a day at the zoo, park, beach or playground,” Murphy said. “This decision ensures we can continue protecting families from gun violence.”
The ruling came on a grim day for the nation. First, a student opened fire at Evergreen High School outside Denver, wounding two classmates before fatally shooting himself. Later that evening, conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed during a speech at Utah Valley University.
Murphy, a two-term Democrat, called New Jersey the “safest state in the nation,” tying historic lows in shootings to the state’s gun laws. Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, a Democrat from Woodbridge, and Senate President Nick Scutari, a Democrat from Linden, said in a joint statement: “Today’s ruling, along with the record low number of shootings across the state, reinforces the reality that New Jersey’s approach to gun safety is working.”
Gun rights advocates strongly opposed Murphy’s restrictions.
The lead plaintiffs in the case, Ronald Koons and Nicholas Gaudio, couldn’t be reached for comment by NJ State House News Service. Another plaintiff, the Second Amendment Foundation, said the law creates “a patchwork of overlapping categories” that are “intended to encompass nearly every square inch of the state.”
“This ruling flies in the face of the history and tradition of firearms regulation in the United States and we will continue to fight these draconian laws until all residents of New Jersey are unburdened,” Alan Gottlieb, the group’s founder and executive vice president, said in a statement.
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Isabella Burke, an NJ State House News Service intern, is a Rutgers University senior majoring in journalism and minoring in entrepreneurship.
