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GeorgiaCarry.Org, Inc.v.U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

CourtUnited States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
Docket No.14-13739
DecidedJune 9, 2015
Reporter788 F.3d 1318
JudgesEleventh Circuit Judges Stanley Marcus and Robin S. Rosenbaum, and D.C. Circuit Judge Douglas H. Ginsburg, sitting by designation; Marcus authored the opinion
Tags
CivilConstitutional LawSecond AmendmentAdministrative LawConstitutional InterpretationPreliminary InjunctionPermanent InjunctionRemand
Case Summary

GeorgiaCarry.Org and a Georgia firearms-license holder sought a preliminary injunction against a federal regulation prohibiting loaded firearms and ammunition on U.S. Army Corps of Engineers property, including Allatoona Lake. The district court denied relief after concluding that the regulated conduct was outside the Second Amendment’s protection and, alternatively, that the rule would survive intermediate scrutiny. The Eleventh Circuit affirmed, but on a narrower basis. The plaintiffs had advanced only an all-or-nothing theory that the regulation destroyed their right to bear arms and therefore required per se invalidation. The court held that the rule was confined to Corps property, here a voluntary recreational area, and did not eliminate the plaintiffs’ ability to possess firearms elsewhere, including in their homes and on public streets. The limited geographic restriction therefore did not destroy the general self-defense right recognized in District of Columbia v. Heller. The court declined to decide whether the regulation would survive any level of heightened scrutiny because the preliminary-injunction record lacked historical evidence and basic facts about the dam, recreational area, policing, visitors, and public-safety risks. The court returned the case for further proceedings and did not decide whether declaratory relief or a permanent injunction ultimately should issue.

Opinion

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