No law shall abridge the right of the citizen to keep and bear arms for security and defense, for lawful hunting and recreational use and for other lawful purposes, but nothing herein shall be held to permit the carrying of concealed weapons. No municipality or county shall regulate, in any way, an incident of the right to keep and bear arms. (As amended November 2, 1971 and November 2, 1986.)

ANNOTATIONS

The 1986 amendment, which was proposed by S.J.R. No. 10 (Laws 1985) and adopted at the general election held on November 4, 1986, by a vote of 179,716 for and 111,517 against, added the last sentence.

The 1971 amendment, which was proposed by H.J.R. No. 5, § 1 (Laws 1971, p. 1378) and adopted at the special election held on November 2, 1971, with a vote of 55,349 for and 20,521 against, substituted "No law shall abridge the right of the citizen to keep and" for "The people have the right to," deleted "their" before "security and defense," and inserted "for lawful hunting and recreational use and for other lawful purposes."

Cross references.— For the Concealed Handgun Carry Act, see 29-19-1 to 29-19-13 NMSA 1978.

Comparable provisions. — Idaho Const., art. I, § 11.

Montana Const., art. II, § 12.

Utah Const., art. I, § 6.

Wyoming Const., art. I, § 24.

Reasonable regulation of right to bear arms. — A law which prohibits one from carrying a firearm into a liquor establishment is a reasonable regulation and not an infringement upon the right to bear arms, under either the federal or the state constitution. State v. Dees, 1983-NMCA-105, 100 N.M. 252, 669 P.2d 261 (decided prior to 1986 amendment, which added the last sentence).

Section 30-7-3 NMSA 1978, prohibiting unlawful carrying of a firearm in an establishment licensed to dispense alcoholic beverages, is not an unconstitutional infringement upon the right to bear arms under the New Mexico constitution; regulation of the right to bear arms is not a deprivation of that right. State v. Lake, 1996-NMCA-055, 121 N.M. 794, 918 P.2d 380, cert. denied, 121 N.M. 676, 916 P.2d 1343.

Conviction for negligent weapon use constitutional. — Possession of firearms by intoxicated persons presents a clear danger to the public. The state constitution does not support a right to engage in this type of behavior. Therefore, the defendant's conviction for negligent use of a deadly weapon did not violate his right to bear arms under the state constitution, since there was evidence that he was intoxicated, he pointed the gun at another person, and he appeared to be loading the gun. State v. Rivera, 1993-NMCA-011, 115 N.M. 424, 853 P.2d 126, cert. denied, 115 N.M. 228, 849 P.2d 371.

Carrying of concealed weapons. — Constitution neither forbids nor grants the right to bear arms in a concealed manner. State ex rel. N.M. Voices for Children, Inc. v. Denko, 2004-NMSC-011, 135 N.M. 439, 90 P.3d 458.

Ordinances prohibiting the carrying of concealed weapons have generally been held to be a proper exercise of police power and do not deprive citizens of the right to bear arms as their effect is only to regulate the right, however, as applied to arms, other than those concealed, an ordinance which purports to completely prohibit the right to bear arms is void. City of Las Vegas v. Moberg, 1971-NMCA-074, 82 N.M. 626, 485 P.2d 737 (decided prior to 1986 amendment, which added the last sentence).

Carrying of loaded gun. — Under the state constitution of New Mexico a person can carry a loaded gun which is not concealed although there may be a local ordinance to the contrary. U.S. v. Romero, 484 F.2d 1324 (10th Cir. 1973) (decided prior to 1986 amendment, which added the last sentence).

It is lawful to carry a gun in a vehicle. State v. Gutierrez, 2004-NMCA-081, 136 N.M. 18, 94 P.3d 18, cert. denied, 2004-NMCERT-006, 135 N.M. 788, 93 P.3d 1293.

Seizure of gun does not have to be related to initial traffic stop when it is justified on safety grounds during a search incident to arrest. State v. Gutierrez, 2004-NMCA-081, 136 N.M. 18, 94 P.3d 18, cert. denied, 2004-NMCERT-006, 135 N.M. 788, 85 P.3d 1293.

Tort by minor. — Parent who keeps loaded firearm in home and who is without knowledge that his minor child was indiscreet or reckless in handling firearms is not liable for tort committed by the minor. Lopez v. Chewiwie, 1947-NMSC-061, 51 N.M. 421, 186 P.2d 512.

Constitutionality of statute making it unlawful to possess a switchblade knife. — Intermediate scrutiny should be applied to determine the constitutionality of 30-7-8 NMSA 1978, which prohibits the possession of switchblade knives; to survive a challenge under intermediate scrutiny, the government must show that the statute is substantially related to an important government purpose. State v. Murillo, 2015-NMCA-046.

Section 30-7-8 NMSA 1978, which prohibits the possession of switchblade knives is not an unconstitutional infringement upon the right to bear arms under the New Mexico constitution. Prohibiting the possession of switchblade knives serves an important governmental purpose, to protect the public from the surprise use of a dangerous weapon utilized in large part for unlawful activity, and prohibiting the possession of switchblades is substantially related to this narrow, but important, purpose. State v. Murillo, 2015-NMCA-046.

Scope of restriction on regulation by municipalities and counties. — The language used in the last sentence of this section simply takes from municipalities and counties the authority they otherwise would have under their police powers to regulate matters which are incidents of right to bear arms. It does not, by its terms, restrict such regulation to the legislature, although the practical result of the prohibition is to allow firearm regulation only by the state and state agencies with the requisite statutory authority. 1990 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 90-07.

The last sentence of this section, prohibiting a municipality or county from regulating "in any way, an incident of the right to keep and bear arms," includes buying and selling firearms. 1990 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 90-07.

Probate court's authority to prohibit firearms on court facilities. — The 1986 amendment to N.M. Const., Art. II, § 6 effectively reserved to the state the right to regulate firearms, and removed local governments' ability to regulate firearms, and therefore Bernalillo county, as an entity, lacks the authority to prohibit firearms at the Bernalillo county government center. New Mexico's probate and district courts, however, have the statutory authority to promulgate their own rules controlling activities in their courts and court facilities, and courts have used this authority to prohibit the introduction of weapons, including firearms, into courts and court facilities. Given New Mexico courts' authority to regulate security at courts and court facilities, and given the public's ability to access the probate court on the second floor of the Bernalillo county government center, it is reasonable to infer that the probate court would have authority to prohibit the introduction of firearms and other deadly weapons onto those portions of the government center that are specifically used for court-related functions. Prohibition of Weapons in Multi-Use County-Owned Building (12/1/2022), Att'y Gen. Adv. Ltr. 2022-16.

Law reviews. — For article, "The Right (?) to Keep and Bear Arms," see 27 N.M. L. Rev. 491 (1997).

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 79 Am. Jur. 2d Weapons and Firearms §§ 4, 5, 8, 27.

Gun control laws, validity and construction of, 28 A.L.R.3d 845.

Validity of state statutes restricting the right of aliens to bear arms, 28 A.L.R.4th 1096.

Fact that weapon was acquired for self-defense or to prevent its use against defendant as defense in prosecution for violation of state statute prohibiting persons under indictment for, or convicted of, crime from acquiring, having, carrying, or using firearms or weapons, 39 A.L.R.4th 967.

Sufficiency of prior conviction to support prosecution under state statute prohibiting persons under indictment for, or convicted of, crime from acquiring, having, carrying, or using firearms or weapons, 39 A.L.R.4th 983.

Validity of state statute proscribing possession or carrying of knife, 47 A.L.R.4th 651.

Validity of state gun control legislation under state constitutional provisions securing the right to bear arms, 86 A.L.R.4th 931.

Validity, construction and application of state or local law prohibiting manufacture, possession, or transfer of "assault weapon," 29 A.L.R.5th 664.

Federal constitutional right to bear arms, 37 A.L.R. Fed. 696.

16 C.J.S. Constitutional Law § 148; 16B C.J.S. Constitutional Law § 511; 94 C.J.S. Weapons §§ 2, 3, 8, 10.