Magistrate Judge James Wicks of the Eastern District of New York ruled on Monday, August 26, 2026, that the suspension of pistol licenses held by a Nassau County couple violated the Second Amendment. The couple, residents of Nassau County, New York, had held New York State pistol licenses since 2020, issued by the Nassau County Police Department's Pistol License Section (PLS).

The suspension arose after the couple's daughter, a student at SUNY Old Westbury College, was admitted to a Massachusetts hospital in February 2024 for mental health treatment. In September 2024, a patient at the hospital reported to the college that the daughter had drawn threatening images. Subsequently, the Nassau County Police Department transported the daughter to Nassau University Medical Center.

Police Investigator Cafarella began reviewing the incident on September 18, 2024. The suspension was based on a "volatile mental situation" in the household and the couple's failure to notify the PLS of the daughter's hospitalization. However, throughout the investigation, it was never alleged that the couple's firearms were accessible to anyone other than themselves. A lieutenant in the NCPD Homeland Security Unit, involved in the investigation, advised the PLS accordingly.

Cafarella testified that he did not consider the couple dangerous or a threat to public safety but continued the suspension pending the outcome of the daughter's treatment and any further incidents. The suspension also considered the couple's decision to place their daughter in an inpatient program and to safeguard their weapons outside Nassau County.

The ruling highlights the tension between public safety concerns and constitutional rights in cases involving mental health and firearm access.

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