U.S. Virgin Islands concealed carry rules face nonresident lawsuit
Gun rights nonprofits ask a federal judge to let nonresidents seek concealed handgun permits in the territory.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
3 min read
Gun Owners of America and Gun Owners Foundation have sued the U.S. Virgin Islands over concealed carry access for people who do not live in the territory. The federal lawsuit asks a judge to require the territory to let nonresidents apply for and receive licenses to carry concealed handguns.
The case names the U.S. Virgin Islands government and its police commissioner as defendants, according to the complaint filed Monday. It adds to a broader court fight over how the Second Amendment applies to the territory’s firearm licensing system.
Can nonresidents get concealed carry permits in the U.S. Virgin Islands?
The lawsuit says the territory is blocking nonresidents from the concealed carry licensing process. A concealed carry license allows a person, where permitted by law, to carry a handgun in a hidden manner for purposes such as self-defense.
The complaint centers in part on Sean Dale Henry, a Florida resident who belongs to Gun Owners of America and supports Gun Owners Foundation. According to the lawsuit, Henry called the U.S. Virgin Islands police department several times to try to apply for a concealed handgun license.
The complaint says Henry could not reach police by phone. It states: “Henry has been unable to get the USVI police to so much as pick up the telephone,” and adds that the lack of response makes his claimed need for self-defense more urgent.
The lawsuit says Henry plans to travel to the U.S. Virgin Islands at least twice in the coming months and wants to bring a concealed firearm for self-defense. The nonprofits are asking the court to make the licensing process available to people like Henry who are not residents of the territory.
Luis Valdes, the U.S. Virgin Islands outreach director for Gun Owners of America, said in a statement that constitutional protections do not stop when Americans travel to a U.S. territory. “The Second Amendment doesn’t end at the shoreline,” Valdes said.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Virgin Islands government did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
How does this fit with the Justice Department case?
The new lawsuit follows a separate Second Amendment case brought by the U.S. Justice Department in December against the U.S. Virgin Islands. In that case, the Justice Department accused the territory of obstructing and routinely denying American citizens the right to possess and carry firearms.
The Justice Department cited local requirements that applicants show a “good reason to fear death or great injury to his person or property” and obtain support from “two credible persons” who can vouch for their need for a gun.
At the time, the U.S. Virgin Islands government said it was “committed to protecting constitutional rights while maintaining public safety.”
In a February court filing in that case, the territory accused the federal government of coming to court “with unclean hands.” The filing said the United States employs hundreds of thousands of law enforcement officers whom the territory accused of violating rights protected by the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 14th amendments.
That Justice Department case remains pending in court.
This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.