Supreme Court debates gun rights in dramatic two-hour argument over concealed carry, self-defense

The Supreme Court debated concealed carry of handguns in public places and discretionary state permitting requirements that set limits in the interest of public safety.

The nation's highest court on Wednesday spent nearly two hours wrestling with the concealed carry of handguns in public places and discretionary permitting requirements in nearly a dozen states that impose limits in the interest of public safety.

The oral arguments on Second Amendment rights -- the court's most consequential in more than a decade -- focused on a century-old New York state law that requires gun owners to show "proper cause" -- or a specific special need -- to carry a handgun in public for self-defense.

Eight other states have similar "may issue" laws that give local authorities discretion to decide who receives a license based on particularized circumstances. Most states have looser requirements giving otherwise law-abiding gun owners easier ability to carry.

Many of the court's conservative justices appeared skeptical of New York-style regimes that subject a constitutional right to bear arms to the discretion of a government official. At the same time, several raised concerns about public safety if carry restrictions were rolled back too far.