Attorney General Alan Wilson fights against burdensome gun restrictions

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – Attorney General Alan Wilson joined two friend-of-the-court briefs opposing laws that curb the Second Amendment rights of citizens in two states.

California law requires a background check every time an individual purchases ammunition, and an ammunition sale to a California resident must occur in a “face-to-face transaction with a California-licensed seller.”  To avoid a six- to seven-day wait for background check results, residents can register their firearms with the state’s “Automated Firearms System,” but that system wrongly denies the purchaser at least 11% of the time.

Another infringement is occurring in New Jersey, where a statute bans the public carry of firearms in “sensitive places.” That list includes zoos, parks, beaches, sites where alcohol is served, entertainment facilities, and public recreation facilities, among others.

“As our states’ top prosecutors, we’re in favor of making our communities safer,” Attorney General Wilson stated. “These restrictions in California and New Jersey infringe on the Second Amendment rights of their citizens.”

“Our Founding Fathers did not restrict the right to bear arms to ‘non-sensitive’ places,” Attorney General Wilson continued. “This right is vital to those in high-crime areas where law enforcement is stretched thin. These citizens’ ability to purchase ammunition and protect themselves in public places should not be infringed upon.”

Attorney General Wilson is joined in these briefs by over 20 other attorneys general across the nation.

You can read the briefs here and here.