Attorney General Josh Shapiro Violates Second Amendment and Due Process Rights of Hundreds, Again…

Today,

Chief Counsel Joshua Prince and Attorney Dillon Harris filed suit against Attorney General Josh Shapiro and his Office of Attorney General for violating the Second Amendment and due process rights of hundreds of Pennsylvania residents, by failing, since his election as Attorney General in 2017, to timely hold Pennsylvania Instant Check System (“PICS”) challenge appeals and failing to issue decisions; thereby, stripping non-prohibited individuals of their right to keep and bear arms and due process, in perpetuity, per the Pennsylvania State Police statistics.

Specifically, as averred in the Petition for Review

In either absolute dereliction and abdication of his statutory duties or for political purposes, Attorney General Josh Shapiro has failed to timely hear and adjudicate appeals of Pennsylvania Instant Check System (“PICS”) Challenges over the past four years, resulting in individuals, like Petitioner Mangold and members of Petitioner FOAC-ILLEA, being unconstitutionally stripped of their right to bear arms, in violation of Article 1, Section 21 of the Pennsylvania Constitution and the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and right to due process, in violation of Article 1, Section 1 of the Pennsylvania Constitution and the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, as the result of the Pennsylvania State Police’s erroneous, improper, and unsupportable labeling of Petitioner Mangold and those similarly situated, as prohibited, even when they have submitted evidence establishing that they are neither prohibited under state nor federal law, and resultantly, stripping these non-prohibited individuals from their constitutional right – as set forth by the U.S. Supreme Court in New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n, Inc. v. Bruen, 142 S.Ct. 2111 (2022) – to purchase, possess, and carry a firearm inside and outside of their home for purposes of defense of themselves, their families, and others.

It continues on

As a result of Attorney General Josh Shapiro and his Office of the Attorney General’s (“OAG”) interpretation, implementation, and enforcement of their rules, policies, and practices, in direct defiance of the General Assembly’s mandate, individuals, such as Petitioners, can expect, based on the Pennsylvania State Police’s (“PSP”) statistics regarding decisions by the Attorney General’s Office, that their cases will be adjudicated in approximately 1,076 years, or well past their deaths, ten times over.

And

Not to worry though, based on the same statistics, individuals, such as the Petitioners, can expect to receive a hearing in approximately 215 years, or well past their deaths, three times over.

Perhaps most damning for AG Shapiro is the fact that since being sworn into office, his Office, since 2018, has only heard five appeals and issued one decision and those were all in 2018. From 2019-2021, per the PSP’s own statistics, AG Shapiro’s Office neither heard nor decided a single case. As a result of the PSP statistics, it is believed that more than 250 appeals are pending and have neither received hearings nor decisions. As the Petition further declares

Based on the number of pending appeals and the rates at which hearings are conducted, it will take the OAG over 200 years just to hold hearings in the appeals that are currently pending, irrespective of newly filed appeals

And that

Based on the number of pending appeals and the rates at which hearings are conducted, it will take the OAG over 1,000 years to decide the appeals that are currently pending, irrespective of newly filed appeals

And this isn’t the first time AG Shapiro has violated the constitutional rights of the residents of this Commonwealth. As held by then-Judge (now Justice) Brobson, in granting a preliminary injunction in Landmark Firearms, LLC, et al. v. Evanchick, 694 M.D. 2019, AG Shapiro violated the due process rights of everyone in this Commonwealth by redefining what constituted a firearm, in the absence of going through the legislative process. And perhaps more damning for AG Shapiro was the oral argument that occurred prior to the issuance of the preliminary injunction, where the following colloquy occurred:

According to AG Shapiro and his Office, we’re mere peasants that are to be subjected to the rule of law (which he makes up out of whole cloth), unlike himself and the ruling class, which are to be protected at all cost.

If your constitutional rights have been infringed upon by Attorney General Josh Shapiro or a Commonwealth agency, contact FICG today to discuss YOUR options!

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Published by Joshua Prince, Esq.

With our 2nd Amendment rights being attacked at both the Federal and State level, and the ATF (Burea of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives) trying to close down FFLs (Federal Firearms Licensees) for minor infractions while making FFLs the scapegoat when the ATF’s records are inaccurate, I want to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I am one of only a handful of attorneys across the US that practices in the niche area of law known as firearms law. I decided to concentrate my legal practice on firearms law not only because I am a shooter and firearms enthusiast, but also to ensure that our inalienable Right to Keep and Bear Arms is never encroached upon. I handle cases at the Federal and State level for both FFLs and individuals. At the federal and state levels for individuals, I actively defend the 2nd Amendment of the US Constitution and Section 21 of the PA Constitution, as well as, help individuals with: – License to Carry Firearms Denials; – Challenges to Erroneous PICS Denials; – Relief from Firearms Disabilities; – Estate Planning Advice; – Gun/NFA Trusts; and – 42 USC 1983 Actions for Deprivation of Civil Rights At both the state and federal levels, I represent FFLs and SOTs throughout Pennsylvania and the US regarding: – ATF Compliance Inspections; – Warning Letters and Hearings; – FFL Revocations; – Corporate Structure Advice – Indoor/Outdoor Range Implementation; and – Forfeiture Proceedings In following my love for firearms and firearms law, I have taught several Continuing Legal Education (CLE) seminars on Firearms in Estates and Trusts and Firearms Law 101 for several Bar Associations, including Berks, Cumberland, and Dauphin Counties. I also planned and taught several Firearms in Estates CLE classes for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute (PBI). While at Widener Law School, I was a member of the Widener Law Journal. I wrote an article on the Inaccuracy of the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR). I also had an article published on Fee Disputes in Workers Compensation cases in the Widener Law Journal, Volume 18, No. 2. You can often find me posting on several internet forums, including Subguns, Uzitalk, AR15, and PAFOA. I also hold PA Firearms Law classes for local ranges to inform the public on the firearm laws of the Commonwealth. Following in my father’s footsteps, I am also a Board member for the Pottstown Police Athletic League (PAL). View all posts by Joshua Prince, Esq.