A Rockland County gun owner and a national gun-rights group are taking their fight straight to the Crossroads of the World, asking a federal judge in Manhattan to toss New York’s ban on carrying firearms in Times Square. Their new lawsuit argues the rule strips licensed handgun carriers of the ability to defend themselves in one of the city’s busiest public spaces and urges the court to put enforcement on ice while the case plays out.
According to the court docket on Justia Dockets & Filings, the case, Goldberger v. James, was filed last Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The complaint lists Yehuda Goldberger of Hillburn and the Firearms Policy Coalition as plaintiffs, and names Attorney General Letitia James, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg as defendants. Local TV coverage has already picked it up, with PIX11 outlining the core claims.
What the lawsuit says
The Firearms Policy Coalition, serving as co-plaintiff, argues that the Times Square restriction crosses a constitutional line. In a press release, the group said the rule “unconstitutionally deprives individuals of the right to keep and bear arms in what is indisputably a public place where the need for self-defense may arise.” FPC says it is asking the court for a permanent injunction that would bar the state and city from enforcing the ban at all.
Where the law comes from
The contested restriction traces back to New York’s post-Bruen Concealed Carry Improvement Act, enacted in 2022, which created a list of “sensitive locations” that explicitly includes “the area commonly known as Times Square.” Under guidance from the state’s Division of Criminal Justice Services, having a firearm in one of those locations can be treated as a felony offense even for people who hold valid carry licenses. New York DCJS lays out those locations along with the limited exceptions built into the law.
How courts have ruled so far
So far, judges have left the Times Square rule in place. In September 2025, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld a lower court’s refusal to issue a preliminary injunction against the ban. The panel concluded that keeping firearms out of “quintessentially crowded” places fits within the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation, a key part of the current Second Amendment test. AP News detailed that ruling and the court’s reasoning.
Plaintiff’s background and the stakes
The complaint describes plaintiff Yehuda Goldberger as a licensed concealed-carry holder who regularly commutes into Midtown for work and recreation. It says he carries a firearm for self-defense and is harmed by a rule that effectively carves out one of the city’s most trafficked public squares from where he can lawfully carry. Bloomberg Law recapped the legal arguments, while Ammoland has highlighted Goldberger’s Hillburn address and his licensing status outside city limits.
What’s next
As of now, the defendants have not filed a public response. The docket reflects only the early procedural moves, including requests for summonses. Attorney General Letitia James’s office has previously defended the 2022 gun law and has repeatedly argued that “common-sense gun laws save lives,” a line the state has leaned on while backing sensitive-location rules like the Times Square ban. Justia and prior coverage of related challenges offer a roadmap for how this case is likely to progress.
Why it matters
The lawsuit is another test of the standard the U.S. Supreme Court set in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which requires courts to measure modern gun regulations against historical tradition. That framework has produced a patchwork of results in lower courts, and Times Square may be the most high-profile battleground yet for the question of what counts as a “sensitive location.” A ruling that backs the plaintiffs could reopen a major front in New York’s post-Bruen regulatory scheme, while a loss would reinforce the state’s power to cordon off crowded urban hubs from licensed carriers. Cornell Law School hosts the full Bruen opinion that judges are still applying.
Whether Goldberger’s complaint clears the procedural and precedent hurdles that stalled earlier challenges is an open question, but it guarantees another high-visibility clash over guns in New York City. Expect a steady stream of motions and briefs in the coming weeks that will reveal whether the Times Square ban finally gets a full merits showdown or runs into yet another procedural roadblock.
