Grass Roots North Carolina (GRNC) and Gun Owners of America (GOA), together with three Mecklenburg County residents, had previously filed suit against Sheriff Garry McFadden over his attempt to “slow walk” issuance of concealed handgun permits (CHPs) to lawful residents.
As the only one of 100 counties with significant issuing delays, McFadden is playing a game wherein he floods the Salisbury NC Veterans’ Administration with records requests for mental health checks on CHP applicants, most of whom never served in the military. McFadden then throws up his hands and blames the medical record providers for a backlog he, himself, created.
In a recent hearing on a Grass Roots North Carolina motion for preliminary injunction and McFadden’s motion to dismiss, U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr, appointed by Barack Obama, recently rendered a decision on the case, Williams et al., vs. McFadden, et al.
In Cogburn’s decision, he dismissed GRNC & GOA’s “facial” challenge (i.e. that the vague statute under which sheriffs do mental health check for CHPS), but allowed our “as applied” (i.e. that the statute is being unconstitutionally applied to the plaintiffs) argument to move forward, suggesting that McFadden is likely to see repercussions for his actions. And although the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Department was dismissed as a defendant, McFadden was not. Because Cogburn chose not to issue a preliminary injunction, the case will now move on to its discovery phase.
Said GRNC President Paul Valone:
“While we still believe that the wide and easily abused discretion given to sheriffs in conducting mental health checks for concealed handgun permits is unconstitutional on its face, we appreciate that the judge is willing to consider an as-applied challenge to address the abuses, delays, and obstructionism in permit issuance from Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden which are continuing to this day. Grass Roots North Carolina is very much looking forward to a robust discovery process.”
About Grass Roots North Carolina
Founded in 1994, Grass Roots North Carolina is an all-volunteer 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving individual liberties guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights with emphasis on the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.
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