Supreme Court upholds gun carrying rights

The justices struck down restrictive handgun licensing requirements Thursday in a ruling that upholds Americans’ constitutional right to carry guns in public. In the 6-3 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen, the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional a New York law that required individuals to present some need for carrying a concealed handgun in public in order to get a license. The ruling arrived just before the Senate passed a bipartisan gun violence bill the same day.

What does the decision mean for average Americans? Many more people will likely now be permitted to carry weapons in the nation’s largest cities. Critics argue the ruling will increase gun crime by providing more access to guns. The court issued its last major gun decision in 2010 when it ruled that citizens have the right to own a gun for home defense.

Dig deeper: Read Mark Hemingway’s column in WORLD Opinions on the need for more than political solutions to gun violence.