(The Center Square) – A federal judge blocked parts of a controversial gun measure from New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham Wednesday, but she is not backing down.
U.S. District Judge David Urias temporarily blocked the law, arguing that the executive order runs contrary to recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings on gun rights and violates people’s abilities to defend themselves.
The governor called for elected officials to work with her to reduce gun violence in New Mexico, saying she will not accept the status quo.
“I refuse to be resigned to the status quo,” the governor wrote on social media. “As governor, I see the pain of families who lost their loved ones to gun violence every single day, and I will never stop fighting to prevent other families from enduring these tragedies.”
Additionally, Lujan Grisham said her executive order raised awareness of the gun violence issue.
“Over the past four days, I’ve seen more attention on resolving the crisis of gun violence than I have in the past four years,” Lujan Grisham wrote. “Now is the time to bring clarity of purpose: New Mexicans must again feel safe walking home from school, driving to the grocery store, or leaving their hometown baseball stadium. Who will stand up to protect families and children? I will.”
The executive order Lujan Grisham signed banned carrying a loaded firearm in public in Bernalillo County, including Albuquerque, for 30 days. People who violate the rule face a civil fine of $5,000, as The Center Square previously reported.
The governor’s executive order faced backlash from gun rights organizations, law enforcement, and elected officials, alike.
She even received criticism from Democrats in law enforcement in the state.
New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez told his fellow Democrat in a letter that her gun control executive order was unconstitutional on Tuesday.
“I am writing to inform you that my office will not defend your administration in the above-referenced cases challenging the Public Health Emergency Order Imposing Temporary Firearm Restrictions, Drug Monitoring and Other Public Safety Measures (the Emergency Order) issued by the Secretary of Health on September 8, 2023,” Torrez wrote.
Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen, another Democrat, said his department would not enforce the executive order.
Allen told ABC, “I am wary of placing my deputies in positions that could lead to civil liability conflicts, as well as the potential risks posed by prohibiting law-abiding citizens from their constitutional right to self-defense.”
