A Philadelphia judge appeared poised yesterday to grant the National Rifle Association’s request to block enforcement of recently enacted city gun laws, with a final decision almost certainly headed for the state’s high court.

Previous rulings by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court established “that the state regulates firearms, not the city,” Common Pleas Court Judge Jane Cutler Greenspan told city attorneys during a hearing yesterday.

Mayor Nutter and City Council staked their positions in April by drafting five new laws that limit handgun purchases to one a month; ban certain assault weapons; require the reporting of lost or stolen firearms; prohibit gun possession for people subject to protection-from-abuse orders; and allow removal of guns from “persons posing a risk of imminent personal injury” to themselves or others.

The NRA, two city gun shops, and others obtained a temporary restraining order a week after Nutter signed the laws, and yesterday’s hearing was to determine whether Greenspan would grant a permanent injunction.

While court was in session, a dozen members of X-Offenders for Community Empowerment chanted anti-NRA slogans outside the courtroom.
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