Support isn’t exactly flooding in for New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham after she declared a “gun violence public health emergency” and then used that as a pretext to justify an executive order suspending the Second Amendment right to carry guns in Bernalillo County and the City of Albuquerque for the next 30 days.
It’s bad enough that well-known gun control advocates have publicly criticized the move as blatantly unconstitutional.
I support gun safety laws. However, this order from the Governor of New Mexico violates the U.S. Constitution. No state in the union can suspend the federal Constitution. There is no such thing as a state public health emergency exception to the U.S. Constitution. https://t.co/kOhLMtaOl2
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) September 9, 2023
I support gun safety but there is no such thing as a state public health emergency exception to the U.S. Constitution. https://t.co/6GfbOZLc7g
— David Hogg 🟧 (@davidhogg111) September 9, 2023
Suspending concealed carry permits:
Is a bad idea.
Will not solve anything, may make things worse.
Is the sort of knee-jerk that only fosters distrust.The best policy involves bringing responsible gunowners to the table to work towards real solutions. This ain’t one of them https://t.co/bx9dfXwTzM
— Ryan Busse (@ryandbusse) September 9, 2023
Sure, that’s embarrassing. But what’s far worse is that prominent law enforcement officials on the ground in Bernalillo County and the city of Albuquerque have announced they won’t enforce Governor Grisham’s unconstitutional power-grab.
As the AP reports . . .
Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman, who once served as a Democratic party leader and was appointed by Lujan Grisham, on Saturday joined Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller and Police Chief Harold Medina saying they wouldn’t enforce the order.
“As an officer of the court, I cannot and will not enforce something that is clearly unconstitutional,” said Bregman, the top prosecutor in the Albuquerque area. “This office will continue to focus on criminals of any age that use guns in the commission of a crime.”
Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen said he was uneasy about how gun owners might respond.
“I am wary of placing my deputies in positions that could lead to civil liability conflicts,” Allen said, “as well as the potential risks posed by prohibiting law-abiding citizens from their constitutional right to self-defense.”
All are Democrats, just as Governor Grisham is. So what’s keeping them from jumping on board with her on this? A big factor is the clearly illegal and unconstitutional nature of the Governor’s order. That’s obvious to anyone who’s familiar with the Constitution and recent Supreme Court jurisprudence.
Then there’s the fact that in 2021, Governor Grisham signed into law the New Mexico Civil Rights Act which bans qualified immunity protection for all government workers, including police. From Forbes . . .
…New Mexico barred all government employees from using “qualified immunity” as a legal defense in state court and created a new way to challenge government agencies that violate constitutional rights. By making it much easier for victims of police violence and other government abuses to sue for damages, the New Mexico Civil Rights Act marks one of the most sweeping police reform bills passed in the aftermath of the tragic killing of George Floyd.
Individuals can now sue state, city and county officials who violate their civil rights (officials can’t be sued personally, however). So that may have something to do with everyone in a position of authority backing away from the Governor like a dog with rabies.
Meanwhile, a peaceful open carry rally for law-abiding gun owners has been planned for today in Albuquerque.
🚨Second Amendment protest tomorrow in Old Town in Albuquerque. Noon.
There is NO LAW that says you can’t exercise your second amendment right! pic.twitter.com/mI8G0ft0nV
— Rep Stefani Lord (@Lord4NM) September 9, 2023
The governor said state police would be responsible for enforcing her unconstitutional carry ban. With local officials refusing to help enforce Grisham’s order, it will be interesting to see if she has state troopers on hand and what, if anything, they’ll do.