No sooner did the Washington DC Police Chief issue his troops orders to not arrest people lawfully carrying firearms within the city in response to a recent lawsuit lawful carry in that city was gone again:
A federal judge on Tuesday granted a 90-day stay in a ruling that upended the District’s ban on carrying handguns in public, giving city officials time to consider whether they will appeal the case or concede and begin drafting gun carry laws.
The breathing room was a relief to local leaders who indicated they might craft legislation in response to the ruling, which deemed it unconstitutional to deny individuals the right to carry guns on city streets.
I doubt anybody is surprised by this. I’m sure the city officials will be busy writing the most restrictive carry laws they can during this 90 day grace period. While the complete prohibition against carrying was ruled unconstitutional there is no reason why Washington DC won’t be able to follow in the footsteps of Hawaii and create a shall issue system that only allows those especially favored by the state to obtain permits.
It also wouldn’t surprise me if the city officials decided to appeal the decision. The rulers of Washington DC never struck me as a group that liked the idea of armed slaves living within its borders. We will probably see every trick in the book pulled out to ensure the status quo remains.
Hawaii might wind up losing its may-issue status given the other federal cases that have overturned may issue in most of the other states. And whatever the city chooses to pass must allow carriers from outside the city to carry, and given the lack of requirements in certain states it might be a step towards de facto reciprocity for carry licenses and practices.