After gun shops around the state were forced to close Saturday because of the coronavirus outbreak, a gun retailer and a Second Amendment group have sued Gov. Phil Murphy, charging he’s violating the constitutional right to bear arms.

The lawsuit was filed Monday in federal court by the New Jersey Second Amendment Society and Legend Firearms shop in Monroe. It comes days after Murphy’s executive order did not include gun shops as an essential business, forcing the online portal that processes background checks to shut down.

“The exigencies surrounding this viral pandemic both justify and necessitate changes in the manner in which people live their lives and conduct their daily business,” the lawsuit said. “However, this emergency (like any other emergency) has its constitutional limits. It would not justify a prior restraint on speech, nor a suspension of the right to vote. Just the same, it does not justify a ban on obtaining guns and ammunition.”

The lawsuit names Murphy and Col. Patrick J. Callahan, the superintendent of the New Jersey State Police.

At a press briefing on Monday, Murphy was asked directly about gun shops being deemed non-essential businesses.

“I’m comfortable where we landed,” the Democratic governor said on deciding what businesses were essential for his executive order. He declined to comment further.

State Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, who was also at the news conference, declined to comment on the lawsuit, but said the decision was, "consistent with federal guidelines, and we’ll defend the governor’s executive order in court.”

Callahan said, “those stores at this juncture are deemed non-essential.”

On Saturday, the online service used to process background checks for firearm dealers, the New Jersey National Instant Criminal Background Check System, told stores they can no longer process requests.

“Per Executive Order 107, (Murphy) is ordering the residents of New Jersey to stay home, directing all non-essential retail businesses closed to the public,” a notice on the online system states. “At this time, the order includes New Jersey Firearms State Licensed Dealers.”

The order does not specifically name gun dealers as a non-essential business. However, it also doesn’t list them among those deemed essential, which includes liquor stores, office supply shops and grocery stores.

The lawsuit filed Monday tells the story of a Robert Kashinsky, a New Jersey resident who doesn’t own a gun but wanted to purchase one “to protect himself and his wife in the event that the situation developed such that emergency services were unavailable or were not reliably available.”

On Saturday, Kashinsky visited an unspecified gun shop to view his options. He decided he would purchase either a rifle or a shotgun, but he did not buy the gun that day. He had planned to go back to the store March 24, but now he can longer do that.

“While state and local governments have the power to reasonably regulate the keeping and bearing of arms,” the lawsuit said, “they do not have the power to prohibit the keeping and bearing of arms, nor do they have the power to close the channels of distribution by which people obtain firearms and ammunition.”

Murphy’s executive order, the lawsuit said, violates the Second Amendment and 14th Amendment. It seeks to reopen the online background check system so that gun dealers can once again sell firearms.

NJ Advance Media reported Thursday that gun shop owners were working long hours to keep up with the demand for business amid anxiety surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. On Sunday, gun owners said they consider themselves essential businesses because they sell guns and ammo to retired and active members of law enforcement.

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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