NRA gets 1st Amendment win as Supreme Court blasts NY official who pressured banks to cut ties with gun lobby

A New York state official may have violated the First Amendment when she issued guidance to insurers about conducting business with the National Rifle Association in the wake of the Parkland mass shooting – and the NRA may proceed with a lawsuit in that claim, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday.

In a narrow win for the controversial gun advocacy group, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said on behalf of a unanimous court that the NRA “plausibly” argued that a former head of the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) may have violated the First Amendment, the lawsuit may proceed.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) argued on behalf of the NRA in March. 

The case dates back to 2018 when Maria Vullo, the former head of the New York DFS issued guidance to banks and insurance companies about conducting business with the NRA in the wake of the Parkland high school shooting which left 17 people – including 14 children – dead.

At the time, the DFS was investigating Carry Guard, an NRA-endorsed insurance programme that offered to pay for civil and criminal legal fees in cases where a gun owner shot another person in self-defense.

DFS was determining whether Carry Guard was permitted under New York law, which generally does not allow insurance products to insure a person for intentional criminal acts. Three insurers later ceased to underwrite the Carry Guard policy after reaching settlements and entering consent orders.

But after the deadly high school shooting, and shortly after the Carry Guard policy investigation, Ms Vullo issued guidance, warning financial institutions of “reputational risks” and encouraging them to “review any relationships” they had with the NRA or other gun advocacy organisations.

The NRA sued, claiming Ms Vullo’s guidance was threatening and violated the First Amendment.

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