State v. Wilson.

What the court held

Christopher Wilson was charged under Hawaii's "place to keep" statutes after officers found a loaded, unregistered pistol in his waistband, and the circuit court dismissed those counts after Bruen. The Hawaii Supreme Court held Wilson had standing to attack the offenses charged but not the separate carry-licensing statute, and that article I, section 17 of the Hawaii Constitution confers no individual right to carry a firearm in public, relying on the provision's text and the islands' history of firearm regulation. It further held the place-to-keep statutes do not violate the Second Amendment because they permit public carry by those licensed under HRS § 134-9, vacated the dismissal, and remanded.

Summarized from the court's opinion.

What this case is about

Hawaii prosecution for carrying a handgun without a license, under the Second Amendment and the state constitution

GunMapUSA summary of the issue, not a quotation from the court.

Key Dates

• 2024-02-07 — Decided

Sources

• CourtListener — retrieved 2026-08-08