Young v. Hawaii: Urging the Ninth Circuit to Protect Strong Open Carry Regulations
Update — On February 8, 2018, the Ninth Circuit granted en banc review and vacated the panel’s unfavorable decision, as recommended in our amicus brief.
Case Information: Young v. State of Hawaii, et al. (9th Cir. brief filed September 24, 2018).
At Issue: In July 2018, a divided three-judge Ninth Circuit panel struck down a Hawaii law providing that law enforcement can issue open-carry permits to people “engaged in the protection of life and property.” In concluding that the open carry regulation violated the Second Amendment, the panel majority incorrectly interpreted Hawaii’s law as “[r]estricting open carry to those whose job entails protecting life or property.” The panel majority further concluded—for the first time by any federal appellate court—that the right to carry a loaded, openly visible firearm in public is a “core” Second Amendment right, placing it on equal footing with the right to keep a handgun for self-defense in one’s home. This dangerous ruling is contrary to conclusions reached about similar laws in three other federal circuit courts, as well as the Ninth Circuit sitting en banc.
Giffords Law Center’s Brief: Our brief argues that because of serious factual and legal errors made by the panel majority, the Ninth Circuit should grant en banc review , vacate the panel decision, and remand the case for application of binding circuit precedents. We argue that remand is appropriate because the panel’s failure to credit evidence about historical regulation of public carry is contrary to the approach used by the Supreme Court as the Ninth Circuit in prior opinions. E n banc rehearing is warranted because the panel decision creates an irreconcilable conflict with the Second, Third, and Fourth Circuits on the exceptionally important issue of whether open carry is a “core” Second Amendment right.