Justices will decide if a state can bar licensed gun owners from carrying firearms onto private property open to the public without explicit permission.
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Wolford v. Lopez on Tuesday, a case challenging Hawaii’s so-called “vampire rule,” which makes it a crime for people with concealed carry permits to bring guns onto private property that’s open to the public unless the property owner clearly allows it.
Hawaii enacted the law in 2023 after the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen decision reaffirmed a broad right to carry guns in public.
Under the rule, carrying a firearm into places like stores, restaurants or gas stations without a sign or verbal permission could lead to misdemeanor charges.
Three Maui residents with concealed carry licenses argue the rule effectively bars public carry and violates the Second Amendment and that “most property owners don’t post permission signs, creating a near-complete ban on public carry.”
Hawaii defends the law as respecting property owners’ rights to decide whether guns are welcome on their land. The state cites historical norms about the right to exclude others from private land to justify the rule.
During oral arguments, some Justices questioned whether the rule treats the Second Amendment as a lesser right compared with other Constitutional rights.
Hannah Hill, Vice President of the National Foundation for Gun Rights, hosted an X thread, annotating the oral arguments, which can be viewed here.
The Court’s conservative majority appeared skeptical of the law’s broad effect on carrying guns in public spaces while Liberal Justices raised concerns about whether the Constitution guarantees a right to bear arms on private property at all.
The decision is expected by late June and will affect not only Hawaii but also similar laws in California, New York, Maryland and New Jersey.
Read more at NBC News.
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