Giffords Law Center Applauds Supreme Court for Siding with Local Public Safety Law Over Second Amendment Challenge

May 15, 2018—Today, Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence applauded the Supreme Court for siding with a local public safety law over a challenge from a gun dealer. The Court yesterday denied review in  Teixeira v. Alameda County , leaving in place a favorable decision from an 11-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit appeals court upholding a local gun dealer zoning law against a Second Amendment challenge.

The Alameda County zoning law at issue prohibits gun stores within 500 feet of any school, liquor store, or residence. Giffords Law Center assisted with the county’s defense of the law, including by filing several  amicus briefs  in partnership with Youth ALIVE!, an Oakland youth violence prevention organization.

“A growing number of communities want to make it harder for guns to show up on school grounds or parking lots,” said Hannah Shearer, Second Amendment Litigation Director at Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. “The Ninth Circuit agreed with our position that Alameda County’s modest zoning law provides a safe distance between new gun dealers and sensitive areas such as schools, and is a lawful exercise of the County’s authority to regulate the commercial sale of guns. The Ninth Circuit’s ruling, and the Supreme Court’s decision to let it stand, is an important victory for local governments seeking to keep the sale and spread of guns away from kids and residential areas.”

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