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A4 U.S. NEWS
Friday 30 May 2025

Georgia Supreme Court upholds ban on those under 21 from

carrying handguns in public

By CHARLOTTE KRAMON state’s motion to dismiss fringed on his client’s rights.
Associated Press/Report for the lawsuit. The Georgia He also called it an arbitrary
America Supreme Court denied his law because military train-
ATLANTA (AP) — The Geor- appeal, noting Georgia’s ing focuses on weapons
gia Supreme Court upheld Constitution guarantees other than handguns. But
a state law Wednesday the right to bear arms but he knew unraveling the law
that bans most people lets the General Assembly would be an uphill battle.
under 21 from carrying a regulate how they are car- “It’s not unexpected be-
handgun in public. ried. cause there’s over a cen-
Under Georgia law, any- Georgia has some of the tury of precedent that was
one ages 18 to 20 years loosest gun laws in the against us,” Monroe said of
old can possess handguns country. The decision Wednesday’s decision. He
on their own property, in comes in the aftermath said they are “disappoint-
their car, at their business of heated debates about ed with the decision” but
or for hunting, fishing and gun control in the state “it is what it is.”
sport shooting. Those in the after a mass shooting at Stephens’ lawsuit came
age group who have been Apalachee High School, less than a year after Geor-
The Nathan Deal Judicial Center, home of Georgia’s Supreme
trained by the military are northeast of Atlanta, where gia Republican Gov. Brian
Court and Court of Appeals, is seen on May, 1, 2024, in Atlanta.
exempt. a 14-year-old boy stands Associated Press Kemp signed a bill in 2022
Thomas Stephens, a accused of killing two allowing Georgians to carry
20-year-old man from teachers and two students tional. The decision, written Pinson wrote in the deci- a handgun without a per-
by Justice Andrew Pinson, sion that construing the
Lumpkin County, sued and wounding several oth- mit from the state. A bill that
Georgia after a probate ers last Sept. 4. says those standards are meaning of a constitutional would let people sue local
“not viable substitutes” for provision “requires careful
court denied him a weap- Stephens asked the state governments for enacting
ons carry license in 2023, Supreme Court to pick one determining what the text attention to not only the gun safety measures died
of the state Constitution language of the clause in
when he was 18. Stephens of two federal legal tests on the final day of Geor-
asked the state to stop en- used for Second Amend- originally meant. Unlike question, but also its broad- gia’s legislative session in
Georgia, the U.S. Constitu- er legal and historical con-
forcing that law, which he ment challenges, “strict April, and several gun safe-
said violated his constitu- scrutiny” or “history and tra- tion doesn’t explicitly let text.” ty proposals did not make it
legislatures regulate how Stephens’ attorney John
tional rights. dition,” to evaluate wheth- out of committee.q
A trial court granted the er Georgia’s law is constitu- people carry guns. Monroe argued the law in-

Texas lawmakers fail to pass ban on social media for those under

18

By JIM VERTUNO signed into law a separate
Associated Press measure requiring Apple
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A and Google to verify the
push in Texas to ban social age of online app store
media accounts for chil- users, as well as parental
dren under 18 has failed af- consent to download apps
ter lawmakers did not take and make in-app purchas-
a key vote on creating one es for users under 18. Utah
of the nation’s toughest re- passed a similar bill earlier
strictions aimed at keeping this year.
minors off platforms such as The proposed Texas ban
TikTok, Snapchat and Insta- aimed at minors was the
gram. latest move in a growing
The bill, which already bipartisan push nationwide
passed the GOP-controlled to address the impacts of
state House, sought to go social media on the well-
further than a Florida so- being of children. Critics
cial media ban for minors accuse platforms of using
under 14. Australia banned addictive functions to lure
social media accounts for children onto their site and
anyone under 16. keep them there, and of
The legislative session ends not doing enough to curb
Monday and early momen- A child holds an iPhone at an Apple store on Sept. 25, 2015 in Chicago. violent or age-inappro-
tum behind the Texas mea- Associated Press priate content, or online
sure slowed at the eleventh constitutional limit on free blamed pushback from and it was ultimately never abuse.
hour in the state Senate as speech. unnamed “billionaires” as brought up for a vote. Nearly half of American
lawmakers face a week- “There was no bill filed this part of the reason for the Patterson said he’ll try teenagers say they are on-
end deadline to send bills session that would have bill’s failure. Lt. Gov. Dan again when the Texas Leg- line “constantly” despite
to Republican Gov. Greg protected more kids in Patrick, a Republican who islature meets in 2027. concerns about the effects
Abbott. Abbott has not more ways than this one,” controls the state Senate, Many tech companies of social media and smart-
said publicly whether he state Rep. Jared Patterson, said Wednesday before have established a pres- phones on their mental
supported the proposed a Republican carrying the the deadline he did not ence in Texas, including health, according to a De-
ban, which was opposed measure, said Thursday. know if the bill had the sup- X, which is owned by Elon cember 2024 report pub-
by tech trade groups and In a post on the social me- port needed to pass the Musk. lished by the Pew Research
critics who called it it an un- dia platform X, Patterson GOP-controlled chamber, Earlier this week, Abbott Center.q