Northern Mariana Islands Sued for Damages under 2nd and 14th Amendments

A United States military veteran, of Northern Mariana decent, has filed a complaint in federal court, asking for damages because his second amendment rights have been denied.  The damages appear to be quite clear, as his guns were confiscated upon his arrival in the Islands in July of 2007, and the Department of Public Safety has refused release two rifles to him, even after the issue of a CNMI Firearms, Ammunition, Explosive's identification card in September of 2007.  From mvariety.com:

 DPS withheld all firearms and ammunition until the issuance of a CNMI Firearms, Ammunition, Explosive’s identification card on Sept. 20, 2007, withholding certain firearms and ammunition after the issuance of the ID. Two firearms were sent to the Guam Police Department Armory for holding while the ammunition is still being held by the DPS’ firearms section, Murphy said

This is an interesting lawsuit, in that it appears to be a "pro se" effort, where Mr. Murphy filed the complaint himself, without the aid of counsel.  From the comments section:

Mr. Murphy, who is a person of Northern Marianas Descent, simply filed a complaint in court, which is his right. That is not easy for a non-lawyer to do. This is a public document, and the press is free to quote from it.

Murphy attempted to regain access to his property for years, all documented in the lawsuit.   The permitting authority refused to do so repeatedly.  This looks like the proper set up for a decent suit, but I am no fan of pro se efforts.  It will certainly be interesting to see what happens, with the Radich lawsuit already well under way, and the defendant in that suit already admitting that the court will likely rule against him with a summary judgement:

District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona will preside over a hearing on the motion for summary judgment on March 5, 2015.

Anticipating an unfavorable ruling from the federal court, Deleon Guerrero and Zarones have asked the Legislature to act “swiftly and without hesitation” to pass an alternative gun control law that is currently pending in the Senate.

Not surprisingly, the anti-second amendment comments are full of personal attacks and misinformation.   It is what happens when the facts and the law are not on your side.

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