Second Amendment Groups Target Purple State’s Decades-Long ‘Permission Slip’ Scheme With New Lawsuit

Michigan gun-rights groups are teaming with the National Rifle Association to challenge the state’s permit-to-purchase law in a federal lawsuit.

Michigan Open Carry, Michigan Gun Owners (MGO), the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners (MCRGO) and the NRA filed the suit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Michigan Open Carry said in a Sunday X post. An attorney for one of the gun-rights organization said the scheme, which dates back to 1927, clearly violated the Second Amendment.

“Michigan cannot require law‑abiding citizens to obtain a discretionary government permission slip before exercising a fundamental constitutional right,” MGO attorney James Makowski said in the release.

Thirteen states have some form of permit-to-purchase or gun licensing provisions, according to Giffords Law Center. Illinois, which has a broader licensing process, was sued in May by the New Civil Liberties Alliance, which is seeking to have the scheme tossed on Second Amendment grounds.

Since the Supreme Court’s June 2022 ruling in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, pro-Second Amendment organizations have vigorously been challenging both