Court Expands Gun Rights
Court blocks state limits on carrying guns in some public and private spaces.
Main Story
Center-RightThe Supreme Court struck down Hawaii’s so-called “vampire rule” in Wolford v. Lopez, ruling 6-3 that the state violated the Second Amendment by barring licensed concealed-carry holders from bringing firearms onto privately owned property open to the public unless owners gave explicit permission. Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the conservative majority, which said Hawaii’s default ban covered stores, hotels, malls, gas stations and other public-facing businesses in a way that infringed the right to bear arms. The ruling leaves property owners free to prohibit guns on their premises, but shifts the default so permit holders may carry unless an owner posts or otherwise communicates a ban. The decision extends the court’s recent expansion of gun rights after Bruen and threatens similar laws in states including California, New York, New Jersey and Maryland, while the three liberal justices dissented.
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Legal Commentary
PolarizedCommentators split sharply over Wolford, with conservative and libertarian writers praising Alito’s reasoning as a necessary defense of carry rights outside the home while liberal critics called the decision an extreme and partisan expansion of the Second Amendment. Several pieces focused on separate opinions and rhetoric, including Barrett, Gorsuch and Thomas arguing public opinion cannot override constitutional rights and Ketanji Brown Jackson warning in dissent about courts invalidating gun regulations.
