Continuing its years-long campaign to eliminate New York’s massive patchwork of public carry bans, FPC argues Attorney General Letitia James should remain in the case challenging the State’s post-Bruen Times Square gun ban.

NEW YORK (October 9, 2026) — Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) announced today that it filed an opposition to New York Attorney General Letitia James’s motion to dismiss in Goldberger v. James, FPC’s lawsuit challenging the State’s unconstitutional ban on firearm carry in the Times Square area. Briefing on James’s motion began over the summer, but due to an instruction from the court, the documents were not filed on the docket until today.

After the Supreme Court struck down New York’s may-issue carry regime in Bruen, the State responded by imposing a massive new patchwork of bans on carry in publicly accessible places. One of those laws makes it a felony to possess a firearm in “the area commonly known as Times Square”—a sprawling area of ordinary streets, sidewalks, parks, hotels, residences, and businesses—even for someone otherwise licensed to carry in New York City. A violation can result in one to four years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.

“New York’s Bruen temper tantrum has already lost in court, and Letitia James does not get to hide behind procedural games while the State threatens peaceable people with years in prison for exercising their rights. FPC and our members are directly harmed by this unconstitutional ban, and we intend to make New York answer for it on the merits,” said FPC President Brandon Combs.

James argues that she cannot properly be sued over the Times Square ban and that the plaintiffs lack standing to sue her. FPC’s opposition argues that New York law expressly allows the Attorney General, at the Governor’s direction, to step into the role of a district attorney and prosecute violations of the ban. That matters because if local prosecutors are ultimately enjoined, James could otherwise remain available to enforce the law in their place. As FPC’s brief explains: “If Plaintiffs are right that the Times Square Ban is unconstitutional, that avenue needs to be closed.”

FPC also rejects James’s attempt to remove the organization from the case. The brief argues that FPC satisfies the Supreme Court’s requirements to sue on behalf of its members and that more recent Supreme Court precedent has undermined the Second Circuit’s outlier rule restricting organizational plaintiffs in Section 1983 cases. FPC separately argues that it may seek equitable relief against unconstitutional government action regardless of that rule.

“When New York tried to nullify Bruen by banning carry nearly everywhere people actually go, FPC immediately took action and we continue to tear apart that unconstitutional regime here. FPC and our Grassroots Army will Fight Forward until the People can freely exercise their right to bear arms throughout the United States, including throughout New York City,” said Combs.

FPC has been fighting—and blocking—location-based carry bans across the country, including in New York, Maryland, New Jersey, and California. The Goldberger case continues FPC’s nationwide campaign to eliminate laws that deny the exercise of the right to bear arms in public.

Individuals who want to join the FPC Grassroots Army and help support important lawsuits like this one can visit JoinFPC.org.

About Firearms Policy Coalition

Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) is a nonprofit membership organization that exists to create a world of maximal individual liberty and eliminate unconstitutional gun control laws. FPC works—and wins—for the People through high-impact strategic litigation, groundbreaking research, legislative and regulatory advocacy, grassroots activism, education, and public engagement. FPC’s legal division, FPC Law, is the nation’s leading initiative dedicated to restoring the right to keep and bear arms across the United States. To learn more about how FPC is working—and winning—for the People, sign up for FPC news alerts at firearmspolicy.org and follow FPC on X, Instagram, and Facebook.