Attorney General Josh Stein has announced his support for maintaining federal laws that regulate the transport of firearms across state lines. “These laws exist to keep families safe and help law enforcement investigate crime,” said Attorney General Stein. “I’m defending these commonsense protections to help prevent gun violence and protect North Carolinians.”
The case in question involves Steven Perez, who received illegally purchased weapons from an unlicensed firearms dealer in South Carolina in 2020. These weapons were transported to Mr. Perez in New York City, where he was subsequently arrested, prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to prison. Mr. Perez is currently appealing his conviction from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, arguing that it infringes on his Second Amendment right to carry a firearm.
A multistate coalition contends that federal regulations on interstate gun transport enhance public safety and support state-specific gun laws without violating Second Amendment rights. The coalition asserts that these regulations are crucial for preventing gun misuse and aiding law enforcement in investigating gun-related crimes with comprehensive information.
Attorney General Stein is joined by attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai‘i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington State and Wisconsin as well as the District of Columbia in filing this amicus brief.
A copy of the brief is available here.
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