Hawaii's strict gun law faces Supreme Court scrutiny in landmark case
[January 19, 2026]
By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER
HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii’s gun laws, long among the strictest in the
nation, will be the focus of arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on
Tuesday. The court is taking up the state's ban on firearms on private
property that is open to the public, such as stores and hotels, unless
the owner explicitly allows it.
Here's what to know about the case:
Banned on beaches, bars and private property
Three Maui residents sued in 2023 to challenge new laws prohibiting the
carrying of guns at places such as beaches, banks, bars and restaurants
that serve alcohol.
The plaintiffs argue that Hawaii is infringing on people's Second
Amendment rights. They say they want to protect themselves at isolated
beaches, and many property owners do not put up “guns allowed” signs for
fear of scaring off customers.
Carrying guns in public is still fairly new to Hawaii. Before a 2022
Supreme Court decision expanded gun rights nationwide, the state's
county police chiefs made it virtually impossible by rarely issuing
permits for either open or concealed carry.
That ruling prompted Hawaii to retool its laws, and Democratic Gov. Josh
Green signed legislation allowing more people to carry concealed
firearms while limiting where they could be carried.
Supreme Court only considering one aspect of the restrictions
A federal judge in Honolulu blocked the restrictions, and the state
appealed.
In 2024, a three-judge appeals court panel reversed most of the judge's
ruling, saying the state could bar firearms on beaches and at parks,
bars and restaurants that serve alcohol, and on private property without
the owner's consent.
The plaintiffs appealed to the Supreme Court, which agreed to decide one
issue alone: the default rule that guns cannot be carried on private
property open to the public unless the owner gives verbal permission or
posts a sign saying they are allowed.
Their attorney, Alan Beck, has led numerous challenges to firearms
restrictions over the years, though this will be his first time arguing
before the Supreme Court.
“I think this is a good opportunity to highlight Hawaii to the rest of
the nation,” Beck said. “A lot of times Hawaii doesn’t get to be part of
the national conversation ... because it’s an insular place off in the
Pacific.”
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The right to self-defense vs. the right to keep guns off private
property
If the default rule regarding private property can be enforced, Beck
said, “the Second Amendment right to carry firearms for self-defense
will effectively be eviscerated.”
He noted that the case includes declarations from Maui business
owners who are willing to welcome gun carriers but do not want to
put up signs, in part because tourists from Asia and Europe are
unaccustomed to the general public toting firearms.
Chris Marvin, a Hawaii resident and gun violence prevention expert
with Everytown for Gun Safety, said the private property restriction
“is built upon the courtesy we all grew up with: You don’t walk into
someone else’s home or a local mom-and-pop shop with a weapon unless
you know for a fact that you’re welcome to do so.”
A mixed tradition on gun ownership
Along with some of the nations' strictest gun laws, Hawaii has some
of the lowest rates of gun violence.
But Beck said it's a misconception that the state's residents
dislike guns.
“Especially on the outer islands, Hawaii has a vibrant hunting
culture that respects firearms just as much as any state on the
mainland,” Beck said.
The 2022 Supreme Court ruling found that people have a
constitutional right to carry in public and measures restricting
that must be consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of
firearm regulation.
In briefs to the Supreme Court, Hawaii notes that long before it
became a state, during the Hawaiian Kingdom, King Kamehameha III
prohibited people from possessing deadly weapons, and subsequent
laws maintained strict restrictions on firearms.
“And what is the American Historical tradition? Well, it is a
blending pot of many cultures,” said Billy Clark, senior litigation
attorney with Giffords Law Center, which filed a brief supporting
Hawaii in the case. “To me a proper inquiry into historical
tradition would consider all of the cultures that have come together
to make America.”
Beck disagreed, saying, “The laws of a monarchy that predates the
United States is not part of our American tradition of
constitutional rights.”
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