Citing a nebulous “public health emergency,” Grisham attempted to impose a 30-day ban on carrying firearms that even covered those with permits to do so.
This act was so egregious that even staunch gun rights foes came out in opposition. It quickly devolved into a stinging rebuke for those who would overreach and attempt to strip away gun rights. But somehow, the lesson was not absorbed by New Mexico’s leadership.
Now there is a 30-day legislative session looming in January, and once again civil liberties are at stake.
Grisham and her anti-gun supporters plan to ram through proposals to ban so-called “assault weapons, limit magazine capacity, mandate lengthy waiting periods, harshly restrict firearm possession by law-abiding adults aged 18-20 and suppress the constitutionally protected firearms industry.
New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez has become a favorite of national organizations opposed to Second Amendment rights. Now he declared his support for a radical agenda to weaponize red flag laws.
Already lacking in due process protections, Torrez wants to permit police officers to directly petition courts to issue orders to seize an individual’s weapons.
Even further, Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber plans to push for gutting protections for lawful gun owners in the state constitution. He intends to spearhead an effort to put the state’s preemption laws to a popular vote.
This could result in a crazy patchwork of laws under which gun owners could be prosecuted in one town for what is perfectly legal in another.
There are states where gun rights are secure and the Constitution is respected, and then there are those where these freedoms are threatened at every turn. Unfortunately for New Mexico citizens, their home state falls under the latter.
