Hawaii Supreme Court Issues Ruling Attacking SCOTUS’ Bruen Decision
Jose Nino
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On February 7, 2024, the Supreme Court of Hawaii issued a decision declaring that the United States Supreme Court’s Bruen (2022) decision does not take precedence over Hawaii’s constitution, which recognizes “no state constitutional right to carry a firearm in public.”
The decision in question was Hawaii v. Wilson. This case involved Wilson’s efforts to have the state government recognize his right to carry a firearm in public for self-defense without first obtaining a permit from the state.
Hawaii’s Supreme Court unanimously ruled against Wilson, Judge Todd Eddins wrote the majority opinion.
Eddins said in his opinion: “We reject Wilson’s constitutional challenges. Conventional interpretive modalities and [Hawaii’s] historical tradition of firearm regulation rule out an individual right to keep and bear arms under the [Hawaii] Constitution.”
Eddins then confronted the US Supreme Court’s Bruen decision, which overturned New York’s proper cause mandate for concealed carry permit issuance.
The Hawaii judge wrote the following:
Bruen snubs federalism principles. Still, the United States Supreme Court does not strip states of all sovereignty to pass traditional police power laws designed to protect people.
He later added, “States retain the authority to require that individuals have a license before carrying firearms in public.”
Such a decision issued by the Hawaii Supreme Court is typical of an anti-gun jurisdiction like Hawaii. It’s ranked in 5th place for the strength of its gun control laws according to Everytown for Gun Safety. Similarly, Hawaii has the dubious distinction of having a 49th place ranking according to Guns & Ammo’s best states for gun owners rankings.
With how polarized the US has become, Hawaii will remain an anti-gun bastion. While the courts can reverse some gun grabs passed in the state, there are no political solutions to the state’s many gun control problems.
At this point, gun owners in Hawaii may need to move to red states to enjoy some semblance of gun rights
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