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DUBLIN, GA – Today, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) announced that it has filed an appeal in Baughcum v. Jackson, its lawsuit challenging Georgia’s ban on the right to bear arms as to young adults. The notice of appeal, along with other case documents, can be viewed at FPCLegal.org.

On October 6th, Judge Dudley Bowen Jr. of the Southern District of Georgia dismissed the lawsuit, saying that “Plaintiffs have not presented a case or controversy between themselves and the Probate Judge Defendants within the meaning of Article III. Thus, the Court does not have jurisdiction over their claims.”

“For reasons unclear to anyone, Judge Bowen expected our plaintiffs to apply for a carry permit that they were ineligible for based on the plain – and unconstitutional – reading of the statute,” said FPC Director of Legal Operations Bill Sack. “But the law does not require individuals to undertake futile acts to establish their Article III standing. Instead of facing this unconstitutional ban on the fundamental rights of young adults head on, the district court punted, plain and simple. Now the Eleventh Circuit will get its chance to properly apply the Bruen standard and knock down this law.” Read more

Federal Lifetime Gun Ban Unconstitutional for Non-Violent Felons Like Appellant, FPC Argues in 10th Circuit Brief

DENVER, CO – Today, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) and FPC Action Foundation (FPCAF) announced the filing of an important brief with the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in the case of Vincent v. Garland, a case challenging the federal lifetime ban on gun ownership as applied to a non-violent felony conviction. The brief can be viewed at FPCLegal.org.

Melynda Vincent is forever prohibited from owning a firearm because she was convicted of bank fraud after writing a false check for $498.12 over 14 years ago. Vincent has since obtained a B.S. in Behavioral Health from Utah Valley University, a master’s degree in social work from the University of Utah, a second master’s degree in public administration from the University of Utah, and she has founded a thriving nonprofit dedicated to counseling and therapy. Despite all that, and the fact that she was never ordered to serve a day in jail those many years ago, the government has forever restricted her right to self-defense. Read more

The Second Amendment Foundation and its partners today filed a federal lawsuit asking declaratory and injunctive relief against the City of Glendale, Calif., its police chief and city clerk. The case is known as CRPA v. Glendale.

Joining SAF are the Gun Owners of California and the California Rifle & Pistol Association. They are represented by attorneys Chuck Michel, Joshua Robert Dale and Konstadinos T. Moros of Long Beach, and Donald Kilmer of Caldwell, Idaho. In addition to the City of Glendale, defendants are Police Chief Carl Povilaitis and City Clerk Suzie Abajian, in their official capacities. The complaint was filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division.

“The City of Glendale’s municipal code generally bans possession of firearms and ammunition on any city property, with no exception for citizens with concealed carry permits,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “This ban applies not just to city property, but also publicly-controlled property or public-affiliated private property, with the only exceptions being streets, roads and sidewalks. Such restrictions relegate the right to keep and bear arms to the status of a strictly-regulated government privilege.

“Our lawsuit is blunt,” he continued. “The Glendale ordinance is unconstitutional. The Supreme Court has made it clear that the right to keep and bear arms for personal protection extends outside the home. As we note in our complaint, the burden is on the city to prove that all areas falling within the definition of ‘city property’ are so-called ‘sensitive places,’ and they cannot do it.” Read more