Guns and Immigration Don't Mix Says Court
In recent years, there has been a lot of rhetoric about two hot-button issues: the right to bear arms and federal immigration policy. Each of these topics has been addressed through legislation and legal battles in a number of states in the U.S. However, the Washington State Court of Appeals issued a ruling last month which actually encompasses both subjects.
State of Washington v. Yasin Ahmed Ibrahim (Division III of the Washington Court of Appeals) stems from an incident in April of 2009 in which the appellant was arrested in Yakima for illegal possession of a firearm and later convicted on that charge. Ibrahim is a legal alien living in Washington, a state which allows citizens to carry guns but requires all legal aliens to register their firearms with the state. The appeals court ruled in favor of Ibrahim and dismissed the charge against him.
The appellate court determined that the statute requiring only legal aliens to register firearms was unconstitutional. The court quoted both the Second Amendment (the right to bear arms) and the Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection under the law) in issuing its ruling. The justices argued that the statute was an unnecessary obstacle which served to deprive Ibrahim of his rights.
Many states require gun owners to register them with the government. But the Washington Appeals Court said that there was no legal justification for forcing legal aliens to register firearms while allowing American citizens living in Washington to own unregistered guns. This decision effectively neuters the statute requiring gun registration for legal aliens.
There are numerous legal justifications for prohibiting or restricting firearm ownership in the U.S., including age, criminal record, or type of weapon. But the appellate court apparently feels that a the birthplace of a person who is residing legally in the U.S. is not one of them.