SAF, Partners File Brief in Challenge to Hawaii’s Handgun Purchase Restrictions

Hawaii is America’s own piece of paradise. As a nation, we’ve got a bit of everything. Deserts, glaciers, rainforests, subtropical regions, and the tropical island chain in the middle of the Pacific.

It’s a gorgeous place with a fascinating culture. The ultimate domestic tourist destination.

But I wouldn’t want to live there, even if the cost of living dropped significantly.

That’s because the gun laws absolutely suck, and yes, that matters to me. Luckily, at least one is being challenged, and the Second Amendment Foundation, along with their partners, just filed a brief on the state’s inane handgun sales restrictions.

From a press release:

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) has filed an amicus brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Yukutake v. Lopez, a case challenging Hawaii’s restrictive firearm purchase laws. 

While the Plaintiffs prevailed before a Ninth Circuit three-judge panel, the case is now being reheard en banc. SAF is joined by the California Rifle & Pistol Association and the Second Amendment Law Center.

“Our brief contends that the Ninth Circuit’s practice of routinely granting en banc rehearing to overturn Second Amendment victories undermines public confidence in the judicial system,” said SAF Director of Legal Research and Education Kostas Moros. “We also argue that the court should reverse its erroneous interest-balancing standard set in B&L Productions, Inc. v. Newsom, which improperly revives a test rejected by the Supreme Court in Bruen. Hawaii’s laws clearly implicate the plain text of the Second Amendment, and without a historical basis, they cannot stand.”

The amicus brief argues that Hawaii statutes, which impose a 30-day time limit to purchase a firearm after receiving a permit and require police inspection of legally purchased firearms within five days, violate the Second Amendment. These laws lack any historical tradition of support and place undue burdens on law-abiding citizens exercising their constitutional rights. The brief is also critical of the Ninth Circuit’s now routine practice of rehearing almost all Second Amendment victories en banc only to reverse the decisions. 

“This amicus brief is part of SAF’s ongoing mission to defend, secure and restore the Second Amendment rights of Hawaii residents,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “These arbitrary restrictions in Hawaii are unique and burdensome with no parallel in other states. We urge the Ninth Circuit to either reinstate the three-judge panel’s ruling striking down these laws or rule in favor of the plaintiffs, ensuring that the Second Amendment is treated with the respect it deserves.”

And let’s understand, this isn’t really about public safety. This is about making gun ownership so burdensome that many will simply decide it’s not worth it. That’s a massive problem.

It’s one thing if the product in question is something that’s not specifically protected by the Constitution, but this is.

Ironically, it’s easier to buy tobacco and alcohol, which kill more people every year than firearms, even if you include suicides as so many anti-gun organizations do. Those kill over 650,000 people every year, not all of them as a result of their own actions, either, and you can get those simply by flashing an ID, if even that.

But guns, which have positive uses? Oh no, we have to impose a time limit for the permit that is ridiculously short, then the police have to inspect the gun, which means they’re likely recording specific information about it, and that’s fine? That’s perfectly acceptable?

No, it’s not.

Then there’s the issue of the previous court doing the interest-balancing act, which Bruen killed. That’s not the standard anymore, thankfully–it was always vile when looking at rights, because the government always has an interest in overriding people’s rights–and it’s wrong to use it. Then again, this is the Aloha spirit we’ve heard so much about, I’m sure.

I wish these groups luck. I hope the court gets its head out of its fourth point of contact and does the right thing for a change.

Editor’s Note: The radical left will stop at nothing to enact their radical gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

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