Georgia judge rules city’s gun ordinance unconstitutional, unenforceable
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A Georgia judge on Wednesday threw out a lawsuit against a man cited for violating a Savannah city ordinance banning the use of guns in unlocked vehicles, ruling that the ordinance violated state law and the U.S. Constitution.
Clayton Papp was charged by Savannah police in August 2024 with violating regulations that impose fines and possible jail time for leaving guns in unlocked cars. His lawyer asked the judge presiding over his case to rescind the citation.
Chatham County Recorder Court Judge Brian Joseph Huffman Jr.’s decision likely applies only to Papp’s case because Papp appealed the decision as part of his criminal defense.
The mayor of Savannah said the city will continue to enforce the rule.
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A Georgia judge has dismissed a lawsuit against a man cited for violating a Savannah city ordinance banning the use of guns in unlocked vehicles. (Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“We’ve been doing this for a long time and we’ve reduced the number of guns stolen from unlocked vehicles in Savannah,” Democratic Mayor Van Johnson told reporters.
Johnson enacted the gun regulation as a way to promote responsible gun ownership without violating the rights to own or bear firearms. The number of guns stolen from unlocked cars reported to Savannah police dropped from 200 in 2023 to just over 100 this year, the agency said Wednesday.
The Savannah city council voted unanimously last year to ban firearms in unlocked vehicles; Those who violated this law would be subject to a maximum fine of $1,000 and 30 days in prison.
Proponents of the measure argued it would make it harder for criminals to steal firearms in the Peach State, where Republican state lawmakers have made it easier to own and carry guns.
“Concerns about firearms stolen from vehicles and subsequently used in violent crimes are indeed concerning,” the judge said in his ruling. “But good faith does not exempt legislation from constitutional review.”
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Savannah Mayor Van Johnson said the city will continue to enforce gun regulations. (Getty Images)
Huffman Jr. dismissed the lawsuit Wednesday in a ruling declaring Savannah’s ordinance “invalid and unenforceable.”
The judge said the ordinance violated state law, which prohibits local governments from regulating the “possession, possession, transportation (or) transportation” of firearms.
It also ruled that the regulation “imposes burdens on conduct falling within the plain text of the Second Amendment.”
Georgia Republican Attorney General Chris Carr hailed the ruling as “a major victory for law-abiding gun owners who should not be punished for the actions of criminals and thieves.”
Georgia State University law professor Anthony Michael Kreis told The Associated Press that although the judge found that Savannah’s decision was illegal, the ruling likely applies only to Papp’s case because the challenge was brought as part of the criminal defense and not a broader lawsuit seeking an injunction to halt further enforcement.
“Theoretically, the city could continue to enforce the ordinance and leave it to individual defendants to re-raise this question as a defense,” Kreis said. he said.
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Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr hailed the ruling as “a major victory for law-abiding gun owners.” (Getty Images)
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A separate lawsuit filed by another gun owner seeking to halt enforcement of the ordinance was dismissed last year by a different judge in Chatham County Superior Court, which ruled that the gun owner lacked standing to sue because he was not a Savannah resident and was not named under the ordinance.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
