The Supreme Court on Monday signaled their willingness to hear the first Second Amendment case in a decade, known as New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. New York City. The High Court denied a motion, filed by the City, asking for the case to be dropped because of its mootness.
NYC filed the motion because they changed the law in question since the case was first brought about. In their mind, the law changes addresses any concerns the plaintiffs have. The justices scheduled oral arguments for December, telling both sides the “question of mootness will be subject to further consideration, and the parties should be prepared to discuss it.”
The City banned gun owners from transporting their lawfully purchased firearms outside of city limits. When the New York State Rile and Pistol Association filed their lawsuit, gun control advocates in the state decided to remove the ban, out of fear of losing in court.
“It’s outrageous that the city has furiously tried to derail this case by changing the law,” Alan Gottlieb, Founder and Executive Vice President of the Second Amendment Foundation, said in a statement. “That says volumes not only about the city’s fear of having to defend their restrictive gun control law before the court, but it also suggests to us that the city knew all along their law would not pass the constitutional smell test under any level of scrutiny, and they panicked."
Pro-gun advocates want the Court to make a determination in this case, out of fear that the law will be reimplemented should the case be dropped.
Back in August, a handful of Democrats wrote an amicus curiae brief telling the Supreme Court not to take up the case because it's political in nature. The Democrats also threatened to pack the Court with progressive justices if they move forward with the case. In response, 56 Republican Senators sent a letter to SCOTUS, telling them not to be intimidated by Democrats' empty-handed threats.