S.D.N.Y. UPHOLDS NEW YORK GUN RESTRICTIONS

In Kachalsky. v. Cacace, 10-cv-05413, Judge Cathy Seibel of the Southern District granted summary judgment against plaintiffs raising a Second Amendment challenge to New York’s restrictive concealed carry laws.  After Heller, where SCOTUS rejected the District of Columbia’s total ban on handguns outside the home, courts are still left to hammer out what types of restrictions pass Constitutional muster.  At issue here is Section 400.00(2)(f) of the New York State Penal Law, which requires that New Yorkers who wish to carry a handgun make an application to the State, in which they must show an “actual and articulable” — rather than a “merely speculative, potential, or even specious” – reason why they need a weapon.  Plaintiffs in Kachalsky are represented by Alan Gula of Virginia, and Vincent Gelardi of Gelardi and Randazzo, Rye Brook NY.  It will be interesting to see what the Second Circuit does if it takes up the issue.