Appeals court rejects lawsuit against state's new gun law

PHOTOGRAPHER: The Associated Press

A midlevel state court has rejected claims that New York’s new gun law violates the state Constitution because it was passed too quickly and restricts the rights of a citizen militia.

The Appellate Division decision Wednesday upheld a judge’s ruling that state law generally prohibits judicial review of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s justification for pushing the bill quickly through the Legislature on Jan. 15, instead of waiting the three days usually required.

Cuomo used a “message of necessity” to skirt the waiting period, saying some guns and high-capacity magazines are so dangerous they needed to be restricted as soon as possible.

Robert Schulz, who sued with more than 1,000 other plaintiffs, claims Cuomo’s emergency justification was false. The law bans high-capacity magazines and tightens the definition of illegal “assault weapons.”