INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WOWO) – Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill is joining other attorneys general and governors from 22 other states in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a case regarding the rights of law-abiding citizens to carry firearms outside of their homes.

The New Jersey case Rogers v. Grewal restricts a person’s right to carry a handgun in public for self-defense unless the person can prove a “justifiable need” to do so.  The Third Circuit Court of Appeals failed to strike down the law which contradicts other federal court rulings in similar cases.

The Nine Court of Appeals struck down a Hawaii law that is very similar to New Jersey’s, stating that the Second Amendment protects a person’s right to bear arms in public for self-defense.

The D.C Circuit also overturned a District of Columbia Law limiting the issuing of handgun carry permit only to people who could prove a specific threat or danger to their lives.

Attorney General Curtis Hill states “The Constitution very plainly guarantees that all law-abiding citizens have the right to bear arms.”  “Requiring individuals to prove special circumstances in order to ‘qualify’ for this right completely misconstrues the meaning of the Second Amendment.  Under such an interpretation, in fact, carrying firearms becomes a privilege granted to a chosen few rather than a right enjoyed by all free people.”

In the Rogers v. Grewal case, Thomas R Rogers was denied a permit to carry a handgun.  Rogers services ATM machines and carries a lot of money around, sometimes in areas with high-crime.  He passed a background checks, completed a firearms training course and met every requirement needed to obtain a permit. The permit was denied as a result of the local police chief in his area said he didn’t have a “justifiable need” to carry a handgun in New Jersey.

There are 42 states that currently have a “shall-issue” firearms standard which allows citizens to obtain permits as long as all of the requirements are met.  New Jersey, however, has a “may-issue” firearms standard that allows people working in the government to make the decision to restrict citizens from carrying handguns outside of their homes regardless if they passed every requirement stated by New Jersey law.