By John Kruzel
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday declined to revive a Missouri law that bars state and local officials from enforcing certain federal gun restrictions that the Republican-crafted law had claimed to nullify for violating firearms rights protected by the Constitution’s Second Amendment.
Handing a victory to President Joe Biden’s administration, the justices rejected a request by Missouri officials to halt a federal judge’s ruling that invalidated the 2021 state law, called the Second Amendment Preservation Act. The Second Amendment enshrines the right “to keep and bear arms.”
The administration sued Missouri in 2022 to block the law. It had urged the Supreme Court not to revive the measure, arguing that it violated a constitutional provision called the “supremacy clause” that makes federal law supersede conflicting state laws. The administration said that the measure improperly interfered with U.S. firearms regulations and undermined public safety.
(Reporting by John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham)