Supreme Court defangs Hawaii’s ‘vampire rule’ for gun owners 

Hawaii enacted a default gun law requiring permission for carrying on private property after the Supreme Court upended the island’s tight firearm restrictions in 2022.

by Kelsey Reichmann , Megan Butler, Court House News, June 25, 2026

WASHINGTON (CN) — Hawaii cannot require gun owners to get permission to carry on private property, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday, finding the state’s so-called “vampire rule” violated the Second Amendment.

In a 6-3 opinion, the high court held the state law burdens the ability to carry a firearm for self-defense by prohibiting firearms on private property without the express and affirmative consent of the property owner.

The Aloha State enacted its default prohibition in the wake of the conservative majority’s landmark ruling in NYSRPA v. Bruen, requiring modern gun laws to have historical analogs. Three Maui gun owners accused Hawaii of acting in defiance of Bruen, drawing concern from the conservative justices during oral arguments in January.

“For years, the state of Hawaii made it almost impossible to obtain a license to carry a firearm,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the majority.

“Four years ago, however, this court held in New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn., Inc. v. Bruen, that the Second and 14th Amendments protect the right to carry handguns outside the home for self-defense. Hawaii responded by replacing its old law on carry permits with new laws that achieved a similar result,” the George W. Bush appointee added.

Alito was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

In the years since the Supreme Court’s landmark 2022 ruling, the lower courts have increasingly struggled to decide how to measure modern legislation against 18th-century regulations. The justices clarified where to draw that line two years later in Rahimi v. United States, which upheld prohibitions on domestic abusers’ possession of firearms.

Hawaii tried to strike a balance between its strict firearm laws prior to 2022 and Bruen’s new requirements by implementing new rules for how license holders may carry their weapons.

Senate Bill 1230, or Act 52, prohibits individuals from intentionally carrying a firearm on private property without permission. Authorization can be written or verbal, including signage or a verbal “OK” from the owner or their agents.

“Hawaii’s new rule imposes severe restrictions on the daily activities of residents who have satisfied the state’s rigorous requirements for the issuance of a carry permit,” Alito wrote.

“When these permit holders leave home, not only must they take care to avoid all the territory where the possession of a gun is prohibited outright, but they may also be barred from entering many places that people routinely visit in the course of their daily routines, such as gas stations, restaurants, and stores,” the justice added.

Alito presented a hypothetical example of a woman wanting to carry a firearm to defend herself from a violent ex-boyfriend, who could face criminal liability if she sets foot inside any establishment without a “guns welcome” sign.

Hawaii argued its law has more to do with property rights than gun rights, noting the rule doesn’t regulate conduct within the scope of the Second Amendment. During the 1700s, the state said the right to bear arms did not include the right to bring weapons onto private property without consent.

In a 32-page dissenting opinion, Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor sided with Hawaii’s argument, finding it fairly applies a first principle of property law — the right to exclude — and does not restrict the right to carry a gun.

“And even if the Second Amendment were implicated here, Hawaii has proffered ample analogs demonstrating a history and tradition of states protecting their residents’ property rights by requiring those wishing to carry guns onto private property to get express consent from the property owner before doing so,” Jackson wrote.

The Joe Biden appointee noted that since its time as a sovereign kingdom, Hawaii has never permitted the widespread carrying of firearms in its territory.

She also criticized the court for manipulating Bruen into a “free-for-all that lets the judiciary thwart the will of legislatures by privileging access to firearms above all else.”

The Ninth Circuit upheld Hawaii’s law, finding six examples of states enforcing similar laws. An analog involving an 1865 Louisiana law that was adopted as part of race-based restrictions sparked sharp arguments across the bench.

But the majority held that its reliance on the old Louisiana statute — which made it unlawful for any person to carry firearms on the premises or plantations of any citizen without the consent of the owner after the Civil War — holds no weight.

As the statute was enacted as part of the notorious “Black codes” to disarm Black people and leave them defenseless against attacks, the right to keep and bear arms was crucially important for vulnerable Americans during this period, Alito wrote.

“It is beyond me why Hawaii would claim that these vile laws can justify its present-day restriction,” Barrett wrote in a concurring opinion joined by Thomas and Gorsuch.

“While most Hawaiians might prefer that no one carry firearms in public places, a majority’s opposition to a constitutional right is not a permissible basis for restricting it,” the Donald Trump appointee added.

In a dissenting opinion from Justice Elena Kagan, the Barack Obama appointee disagreed, echoing some of Jackson’s concerns.

In Kagan’s view, the law carries a historical analog of firearm regulation, as required under the court’s precedent.

“It is a modern-day analog of colonial and founding-era laws that similarly prohibited carrying firearms onto private property without the owner’s affirmative consent,” she wrote.

The parties did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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SA: Supreme Court overturns Hawaii gun law | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

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TTAG: SCOTUS Strikes Down Hawaii's "Vampire Rule" Gun Ban

R: US Supreme Court strikes down Hawaii handgun limits | Reuters

WSJ: Supreme Court Strikes Down Hawaii Law Restricting Guns on Private Property - WSJ

NR: Supreme Court Drives a Stake Through Hawaii’s ‘Vampire Rule’ | National Review

SCOTUSBlog: Supreme Court strikes down Hawaii gun restriction | SCOTUSblog

B: Supreme Court Strikes Down Hawaii Gun Law on Carry Rights - Bloomberg

NYT: Supreme Court Overturns Hawaii Gun Law - The New York Times