Judge Strikes Down New York Body Armor Ban

A federal judge in Buffalo ruled that New York’s ban on most civilians purchasing body armor violates the Second Amendment, finding that body armor qualifies as protected “arms” and that the state failed to show the restriction was consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of regulating arms. Enacted in 2022 after a racist mass shooting at a Buffalo grocery store in which a gunman wearing body armor killed 10 people, the law limited purchases to people in specified professions, and New York was the only state to bar most civilians from possessing body armor. Residents and the Firearms Policy Coalition challenged the law, arguing the equipment was needed for lawful self-defense. Judge John L. Sinatra Jr. delayed the ruling’s effect for 14 days to allow state officials to consider an appeal, and the attorney general’s office said it was reviewing the decision.