[Legal Insurrection] In a suit that brings together the Second Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), an Amish man filed a federal lawsuit in Pennsylvania last week because he wants to buy a gun without the required photo ID -- and because getting that photo ID would violate his religious beliefs.Andrew Hertzler, according to the suit, is from Lancaster County, Pa., and is an "active and practicing" member of the community; his "parents, grandparents, and siblings are all active and practicing Amish"; and he "has a sincerely held religious belief that prevents him from knowingly and willingly having his photograph taken and stored."
"The Amish faith prohibits an individual from having his/her photograph taken," the suit read. "This belief stems from the Biblical passage Exodus 20:4, which mandates that 'You shall not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth,' as well as the Christian belief in humility."
But Hertzler's humility caused a problem when, in June, he tried to buy a gun from a Pennsylvania dealer "using a non-photo, state-issued identification." This wasn't enough, according to the dealer -- Hertzler was told he needed a picture ID.