Philadelphia Fails in State Firearms Preemption Laws Challenge

Pennsylvania escaped a suit Wednesday from Philadelphia challenging state laws restricting the city from enacting its own local gun-control measures.

Philadelphia failed to show the challenged statutes violate the Pennsylvania constitution’s right to life and liberty by increasing the risk of gun violence, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court said.

The ruling affirmed a decision from a lower Pennsylvania court dismissing Philadelphia’s petition with prejudice. The city and a coalition of its residents argued that two state laws prohibiting local governments from enacting local firearm regulations violated the state constitution’s guarantee of a right to defend life and liberty. Without the ...