by Shannon Curley

Yesterday a state court knocked down one of two strategies the City of Philadelphia is using to pass its own gun laws. The ruling does not directly affect the three recently passed gun laws. The laws require gun owners to report lost or stolen firearms, make it illegal to have a handgun for anyone subject to protection-from-abuse orders, make it illegal for anyone who is deemed to be at risk of being a threat to themselves or to others.

Background:
Philadelphia City Council passed two separate gun law packages both with the intent of getting tighter restrictions passed on gun owners.

THE CITY’s PLAN A
In the first package the city passed a number of laws that all included the line “This ordinance shall become effective upon the enactment of authorizing legislation by the Pennsylvania General Assembly.”
But when the General Assembly did not pass the enacting legislation in 2007, the laws Philadelphia had passed were stalled. So two city council members, Darrell Clarke and Donna Reed Miller filed a lawsuit against the state, hoping that the Commonwealth Court would uphold Philly’s laws anyways.
But the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ruled yesterday that these laws, a group of seven laws passed in May 2007 and signed by Mayor John Street, were unconstitutional because it violated a state statute (Section 6120a of the Uniform Firearms Act). The statute basically says that no city, including Philadelphia, can have stricter gun regulations than those that are passed by the state.

THE CITY’s PLAN B
While this court fight was going on, City Council this spring passed similar gun bills that mayor Michael Nutter signed into law. One big difference is these bills DID NOT HAVE language that made them contingent upon the state General Assembly passing enacting legislation.

The NRA immediately filed a lawsuit against the city. Two of the bills, the one banning assault weapons with more than 10 rounds in them and the one prohibiting the purchase of more than one gun per month, were deemed unenforceable by a judge in the Court of Common Pleas.

SO WHERE DO THINGS STAND NOW?
This leaves three laws that Philly can enforce for now. But the Pennsylvania Supreme Court is expected to have the final say on the legality of all five 2008 gun laws. So despite yesterday’s ruling, the future of Philly’s gun laws is a matter still to be decided.
See full text of the ruling
Shannon Curley is an intern for It’s Our City. She is a senior at La Salle University in Philadelphia.
Related Links:

Reuters: Philadelphia cannot set its own gun laws: court