Attorney General's email address

[rbird7282]

Just got a notice from Sen. Ready that he and others sent the following letter to the AG:

"Re: Request for Opinion on Qualifications for Handgun Permits

Dear Attorney General Frosh:

We, the undersigned members of the General Assembly of Maryland, write to you to urge you to give an opinion pursuant to Article V, Section 3 of the Maryland Constitution as to whether the requirement under §5-306(a)(6)(ii) of the Public Safety Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland that an applicant for a permit to carry, wear, or transport a handgun demonstrate “a good and substantial reason to wear, carry, or transport a handgun, such as a finding that the permit is necessary as a reasonable precaution against apprehended danger” is unconstitutional and unenforceable given the recent decision of the United States Supreme Court in N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen, No. 20-843 (June 23, 2022).

As you know, the Court held that New York Penal Law Ann. §400.00(2)(f) requiring an individual who wants to carry a firearm outside his home may obtain an unrestricted license to “have and carry” a concealed “pistol or revolver” if he can prove that “proper cause exists” for doing so. Under N. Y. Penal Law Ann. §400.00(2)(f) an applicant satisfies the “proper cause” requirement only if he can “demonstrate a special need for self-protection distinguishable from that of the general community.” E.g., In re Klenosky, 75 App. Div. 2d 793, 428 N. Y. S. 2d 256, 257 (1980).

We believe that the “good and substantial reason” requirement contained in §5-306(a)(6)(ii) of the Public Safety Article is strikingly similar to the “proper cause” requirement set forth N. Y. Penal Law Ann. §400.00(2)(f), and that enforcement of the “good and substantial reason” requirement by the Maryland State Police Licensing Division is now unconstitutional and should be declared unenforceable in a legal opinion rendered by your office. The Court in its opinion specifically noted that:

[O]nly six States and the District of Columbia have “may issue” licensing laws, under which authorities have discretion to deny concealed-carry licenses even when the applicant satisfies the statutory criteria, usually because the applicant has not demonstrated cause or suitability for the relevant license. Aside from New York, then, only California, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, and New Jersey have analogues to the “proper cause” standard. N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen at 4-6 (emphasis added)(footnotes omitted).

We cite the quick action of New Jersey’s Acting Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, who on June 24, 2022, issued Directive No. 2022-17 to all law enforcement and county prosecutors declaring that the holding in N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen prevents permitting authorities in that State from requiring that an applicant for a carry permit demonstrate “a justifiable need to carry a handgun” under the applicable statute, while directing permitting authorities to follow all other applicable portions of the law.

The Court in N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen reiterated its holding from prior decisions that individual self-defense is the central component of the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen at 20. The residents of Maryland should be able to exercise their right to self-defense outside their homes without any further delay given the serious problem of crime and violence now plaguing our State. For example, 29 people have been killed in Baltimore City just in this month, and June is not over. Moreover, just in Baltimore City so far this year there have been at least 171 homicides. In addition, another 332 people have been shot but survived their injuries. https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/statistics-show-29-homicides-within-first-22-days-of-june (retrieved June 26, 2022).

Accordingly, we respectfully ask that you act with expediency to provide guidance and direction to the Maryland State Police and render your opinion as soon as possible. The residents of Maryland, especially those who live and work in Baltimore City cannot wait while the body count continues to rise.

Sincerely,


Senator Justin Ready


Delegate Haven Shoemaker


Delegate Susan Krebs


Delegate April Rose"

Someone might want to tell Justin Ready that DC is Shall issue….


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Oldline6]

Word! Hogan is MIA...Any nomination for higher office is doomed..

 

[Doctor_M]

I believe that he is taking the "basement dweller" approach to campaigning for higher office. He may get fewer votes than Martin O'Malley at this rate. I'm OK with that.