October 17, 2022
The Second Amendment Foundation scored a victory in a ruling by a Tennessee Appeals Court panel striking down a gun ban by a public housing authority in the community of Columbia on the grounds it violates the Second Amendment, citing recent Supreme Court language in the case of New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.
SAF supported Columbia resident Kinsley Braden in the case. He was represented by attorneys David G. Sigale of Wheaton, Ill., and Eugene R. Hallworth, of Columbia. The case is known as Columbia Housing & Redevelopment Corp. v. Kinsley Braden.
Writing for the three-judge panel, Judge Frank G. Clement, Jr., explained, “(I)n light of the Supreme Court’s most recent decision in Bruen and keeping in mind the presumptively unconstitutional status of Columbia Housing’s policy based on the Supreme Court’s decision in Heller, we conclude that a total ban on the ability of law-abiding residents—like Mr. Braden—to possess a handgun within their public housing unit for the purpose of self-defense is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment.”
Judge Clement also noted, “Because Columbia Housing is a government entity acting as a landlord of property it owns, it must establish that its leasehold restrictions on firearms is ‘consistent with the Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation’.” The lower court was reversed and the case was remanded for further proceedings consistent with the appeals court ruling.
Judge Clement was joined by Judges Andy D. Bennett and W. Neal McBrayer in the unanimous ruling.
“We’re delighted with the appeals court ruling,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “This underscores the far-reaching effect of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark Bruen opinion. Mr. Braden was evicted from the public housing complex because he had a firearm. The court properly held that such a prohibition is a non-starter. Rulings like this make it clear the Second Amendment means what it says.
“This is another victory in our mission to win firearms freedom one lawsuit at a time.”