The U.S. Supreme Court declined to overturn a ruling by Hawaii’s top court about carrying a loaded pistol without a permit to carry.
Chrisopher Wilson had been carrying a loaded handgun in 2017 when the Maui Police Department responded to a complaint that he was trespassing on private property.
Wilson did not obtain a permit to carry that handgun in Hawaii, but has since decided to challenge Hawaii’s strict firearm carry laws.
His case made it up to the Hawaii Supreme Court, which touted the state’s “spirit of Aloha” clashed with loosening gun laws.
The case was appealed to the United States Supreme Court, however, it was denied on Monday.
In a joint statement, Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito stated:
“Too many courts are not giving the Second Amendment proper respect. [This decision] is the latest example.”
Both Justices went on to say the Supreme Court may not yet be able to weigh in at this stage of the dispute, but that may be possible later on.
Wilson’s argument was that the Hawaii Supreme Court did not apply the requirement that the gun regulations be “consistent with this nation’s tradition of firearm regulation.”
The state’s Supreme Court rebutted, saying the landmark 2022 Bruen decision doesn’t bar states from requiring a license to publicly carry a gun and even criticized the U.S. Supreme Court’s “fuzzy ‘history and traditions test to evaluate laws.”
The National Association for Gun Rights told the U.S. Supreme Court such “disdain and contempt” for the Justices’ past decisions is not an isolated occurrence across the nation and cannot stand.
Read more at USAToday.
