By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
UPDATE: February 11, 2026 has been set by the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals for an en banc rehearing of two cases challenging New Jersey’s restrictive “sensitive places” law, but for the Second Amendment Foundation—which filed one of the cases, known as Koons v. Attorney General of New Jersey—the announcement came as good news.
In a statement released to the media, SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut acknowledged, “We are thrilled the court has agreed to hear this case with the full panel of judges. The provisions left in place after the three-judge review fly in the face of not only the Second Amendment, but also the Supreme Court’s ruling in Bruen. We are optimistic the court will rule in our favor and finally stop infringing on the constitutional rights of New Jersey residents.”
SAF is joined in its case by the Coalition of New Jersey Frearns Owners, New Jersey Second Amendment Society, Firearms Policy Coalition, and four private citizens, Nicholas Gaudio, Jeffrey Muller, Gil Tal and Ronald Koons, for who the SAF case is named.
The other case affected by the Third Circuit’s announcement is a National Rifle Association-supported challenge known as Siegel v. Platkin. This case involves the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs and seven private citizens: Kim Henry, Nicole Cuozzo, Timothy Varga, Jason Cook, Christopher Stamos, Joseph Deluca and Aaron Siegel, for whom their case is named.
The announcement came as Bearing Arms reported 13 Garden State communities have taken action to return u to $150 of the $200 permit fee now being charged for concealed carry applicants. The effort to get the money returned is a joint operation by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action and the New Jersey Firearms Owners Syndicate. It amounts to a slap in the face to departing anti-gun Democrat Gov. Phil Murphy, who could not run for a third term. He leaves office in January.
As noted by the NRA in a statement, the en banc rehearing was requested in October, following a partial victory in the appeals court.
A Friday report in The Hill suggests the U.S. Supreme Court may be on the cusp of taking other Second Amendment cases. It has already granted certiorari in two gun rights cases, but there are several more on the table.
Under “sensitive places” laws, which were enacted by some states in the wake of the 2022 Bruen ruling, armed private citizens are prohibited from entering various locations where guns are not allowed.
Kostas Moros, SAF Director of Legal Research and Education, said in a statement, “This thinly veiled attempt to make the Second Amendment a second-class right has to be stopped, and we look forward to fighting this bad faith law in court.”
