Judge says Wake sheriff may have delayed gun permits under guise of COVID concerns

A federal judge wrote last month that the Wake County sheriff may have used a public health crisis as a guise to hide that he could not process the number of gun permit applications his office received in 2020.

That possibility is one of several U.S. District Court Judge Louise Flanagan considered when she issued a court order Feb. 20 that a lawsuit could move forward that alleges Sheriff Gerald Baker violated his constituents’ constitutional rights.

Flanagan’s order came in response to Baker’s motion to dismiss the case in its entirety. The merits of the case have not yet been heard.

On March 24, 2020, Baker announced a 38-day suspension in accepting applications for pistol-purchasing and concealed-carry permits. He cited an increase in permit applications and concerns about long lines that would prevent social distancing needed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

His announcement came 14 days after Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency in response to the deadly virus reported in North Carolina for the first time that month.

In response to Baker’s announcement, The Second Amendment Foundation, Firearms Policy Coalition and Grass Roots North Carolina, along with its member Kelly Stafford, filed a lawsuit against Baker on March 27 saying that the suspension violated Second and Fourteenth Amendment rights, as well as rights listed in the North Carolina constitution.

Baker said he stands by his decision in a written statement to The News & Observer released by his spokesman Eric Curry.

“Prior to the filing of this lawsuit and continuing to date, the Wake County Sheriff’s Office continues to receive an unprecedented number of Pistol Purchase and Concealed Handgun Permit applications,” the statement read. “Wake County Sheriff Gerald Baker stands by his decision to protect his office’s staff, the public, and inmates from potential exposure to COVID-19, by placing a temporary halt on the acceptance of applications, until proper health precautions could be implemented.”

Stafford, a Wake County resident, said in court documents she had been mulling the idea of purchasing a gun to protect her family. The documents say she decided to buy one as psychological and economic fears grew due to the pandemic.

On March 25, the court order states, Stafford called the Wake County Sheriff’s Office about applying for a permit and was told she could not apply until after April 30. That prevented Stafford from legally owning a firearm, which the judge acknowledged in her written order filed on Feb. 20.

The judge wrote that Baker’s suspension might be within his legal right to impose “conditions and qualifications” short of banning Stafford from ever owning a gun. She further wrote that no matter what Baker did, Stafford legally would have to wait up to 10 days but no more than two weeks for her application to be approved.

But Flanagan also found that Baker’s suspension does not actually address concerns regarding social distancing or the pandemic. She also said that Baker could have taken less intrusive means to meet the public health crisis needs while still accepting applications.

“Indeed, based on the allegations in the complaint, it is plausible to infer that defendant suspended acceptance of applications due to inability to process a high volume of applicants at a time of acute public need, under the guise of generally articulated ‘public health concerns,’” Flanagan wrote.

The News & Observer reported that by November 2020 the sheriff’s office had issued around 47,000 permits to Wake County residents. That’s more than 34,000 more permits than either of the previous two years.

Though the law states that an application must be approved or denied within 14 days, The N&O found that Baker’s office took, in some cases, up to 70 days to process an application.

A lawyer for the groups that sued did not respond to an email from The News & Observer sent late Wednesday afternoon asking for comment.

Flanagan did dismiss a portion of the lawsuit.

Immediately following Baker’s permit suspension, a Wake County Superior Court judge ordered Baker to resume accepting applications by April 7, 2020, 13 days after the suspension began. Baker complied.

Since then Stafford received her permit.

Because of that Flanagan wrote that a large portion of the lawsuit is now moot and there is no longer a legal remedy the judge should put in place.

Flanagan told the plaintiffs that they can still continue with their suit for monetary compensation and a declaration from the courts that what the sheriff did is wrong.

This story was originally published March 11, 2021 at 9:49 AM with the headline "Judge says Wake sheriff may have delayed gun permits under guise of COVID concerns."