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Gun rights group sues Grisham, says Dem governor ‘throwing up middle finger’ to Constitution, SCOTUS

September 10, 2023 | | Print Article

The National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR) and one of its Albuquerque members, Foster Haines, have filed a lawsuit against New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Secretary of Health Patrick Allen over the Democratic governor’s declaration of a “gun violence public emergency” and subsequent ban of the “the public carry of guns in Albuquerque and the surrounding county by executive order.”

“Not on our watch!” NAGR stated on X.

NAGR cited the Supreme Court’s ruling on NYSRPA v. Bruen, which deemed New York’s ban on the public carry of firearms unconstitutional, according to Lootpress.

“Bruen also held that any gun regulation that does not fall into the text, history, and tradition of the Second Amendment is unconstitutional,” the outlet reports.

“Gov. Lujan Grisham is throwing up a middle finger to the Constitution and the Supreme Court,” stated NAGR President Dudley Brown. “Her Executive Order is in blatant disregard for Bruen. She needs to be held accountable for stripping the God-given rights of millions away with the stroke of a pen.”

Brown pointed to the authoritarian measures leaders took during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is the very danger of runaway executives who believe they have unilateral authority to suspend the Constitution under the guise of an ’emergency,'” he said. “This is exactly what we warned about during COVID. It’s a tale as old as time, give emergency powers, lose fundamental rights. Google ‘Caesar’ if you want to know how that turns out.”

NAGR and Haines are seeking a temporary restraining order “enjoining the enforcement of the Carry Prohibition.”

On Friday, Sheriff John Allen of the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) made clear that he does not support Gov. Lujan Grisham’s emergency order, however, he stopped short of saying he wouldn’t enforce it.

“As the elected Sheriff, I have reservations regarding this order,” Allen said in a statement on X. “While I understand and appreciate the urgency, the temporary ban challenges the foundation of our Constitution, which I swore an oath to uphold. I am wary of placing my deputies in positions that could lead to civil liability conflicts, as well as the potential risks posed by prohibiting law-abiding citizens from their constitutional right to self-defense.”

Allen listed the various initiatives his office has implemented to “proactively address gun violence.”

“While we might not be in complete alignment with the Governor’s recent order, we remain steadfast in our commitment to work collaboratively, both with her office and with the community, to find sustainable solutions to the gun violence epidemic plaguing our county,” he said. “It is through robust dialogues, open-mindedness, and the shared goal of a safer Bernalillo County that we will find our way forward.”

NAGR, along with many others, called Sheriff Allen out on his vague response.

“So you say you don’t support it, but say nothing about if you’re going to enforce it,” NAGR wrote. “What is it going to be Sheriff? Tyranny or protecting the constitution?”

On X, those who do value the Constitution are cheering NAGR on.

“I was hoping someone would be filing 2 minutes after the court opens on Monday,” wrote one user. “Y’all ROCK.”

 

Melissa Fine
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