D.C. Handgun Lawsuit: Suing For Carry Permits
Handgun owners sued the District of Columbia yesterday, charging that although D.C. requires "a permit to carry a handgun in public," it regularly refuses "to issue such permits and refuses" to allow the possession of any handgun that would be carried in public."
Two plaintiffs in the case initially had their applications to carry their handguns initially denied by D.C. Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier, but these were later approved. The lawsuit did not explain the subsequent reversals of their initial 'carry permit' denials.
Two other plaintiffs had their handgun permit applications denied, but these were not subsequently granted.
Language in initial denials of the handgun permit applications stated that the applicants 'carry permit' requests did not comply with a new D.C. handgun law, the Firearms Registration Amendment Act of 2008 ('FRAA'):
The intended use of the firearm as stated on your firearms registration application...is unacceptable per the "Firearms Registration Emergency Amendment Act of 2008," which states that pistols may only be registered by D.C. residents for protection within the home.
The District enacted the FRAA after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in D.C. v. Heller, in 2008 that D.C.'s previous law banning handgun possession in one's home was unconstitutional.
Three of the four plaintiffs in this latest lawsuit are D.C. residents, including a tax accountant whose permit application was denied.
You can read the new D.C. handgun lawsuit below: