Judge blocks New Mexico gun ban but ‘public health emergency’ remains
A federal judge Wednesday issued a temporary injunction against a public health order signed by New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham last week which banned civilians from carrying guns for 30 days.
Lujan Grisham declared gun violence a public health emergency after an 11-year-old boy was shot to death. In her executive order, Lujan Grisham claimed the rising number of gunshot victims strains the state’s “already over-burdened healthcare system and places undue pressure on medical professionals and resources.”
But US District Judge David Urias blocked the gun ban less than a week after it was ordered in response to legal challenges by gun rights advocates. The temporary restraining order is effective until October 3rd, when the court will hear arguments for and against the ban.
Only two sections of Lujan Grisham’s order — the ones prohibiting civilians from carrying guns — have been blocked, however. The “public health emergency of unknown duration” remains in effect. New Mexico’s Public Health Emergency Response Act extends “special powers” to the governor and allows for the isolation and quarantining of taxpayers.
While she admitted her order stood on shaky legal footing, Lujan Grisham claimed that no constitutional right is absolute, and neither is her oath to uphold the Constitution.
The gun ban was met with fierce backlash, particularly from New Mexicans who openly defied the order by carrying their firearms. Michigan-based ammunition manufacturer FeniX Ammunition responded to the ban by offering New Mexican customers free shipping with the promo code “F*ck Off, Gov. Grisham.”
Law enforcement authorities refused to enforce the “public health order” saying it violates the Second Amendment. Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina vowed not to implement the ban, and Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen also promised not to enforce the order calling it “unconstitutional.”
New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez, a Democrat like Lujan Grisham, also refused to defend the order in court stating it violates the Constitution.
Even some of Lujan Grisham's fellow Democrats and gun control advocates slammed the order.
“I support gun safety laws,” tweeted Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA). “However, this order from the Governor of New Mexico violates the U.S. Constitution. No state in the union can suspend the federal Constitution,” he continued, adding that “there is no such thing as a state public health emergency exception to the U.S. Constitution.”
Gun control operative David Hogg echoed Lieu: “I support gun safety but there is no such thing as a state public health emergency exception to the U.S. Constitution."
