by Jeff Charles at RedState
In a significant victory for Second Amendment advocates, the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Bryan Range, a Pennsylvania man barred from possessing firearms due to a non-violent conviction. This ruling, a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling in New York Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, reinforces the principles of individual liberty and emphasizes the importance of adhering to constitutional rights. Even better, it could signify some positive developments in the future when it comes to protecting the right to keep and bear arms for those convicted of non-violent offenses.
The 11-4 ruling was handed down on Tuesday:
Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), a pro-Second Amendment nonprofit that filed amicus briefs during the appellate process, lauded the ruling, referring to its “potential implications for countless others who have been wrongfully disarmed. In a statement, the organization noted:
Continue Reading“At root, the Government’s claim that only ‘law-abiding, responsible citizens’ are protected by the Second Amendment devolves authority to legislators to decide whom to exclude from ‘the people,’” wrote Judge Hardiman in the majority opinion. “We reject that approach because such ‘extreme deference gives legislatures unreviewable power to manipulate the Second Amendment by choosing a label.’”
FPC and FPCAF filed amicus briefs in this case at both the 3-judge and en banc panel stages, and FPCAF’s Director of Constitutional Studies, Joseph Greenlee, argued the case as an amicus curiae before the 3-judge panel.
Greenlee’s authoritative scholarship on the issue,…