A federal appeals court has ruled that permits allowing people to carry concealed weapons are not protected by the Second Amendment.

The ruling by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was issued Friday in a case involving Washington resident Gray Peterson.

A federal judge in 2011 tossed out Peterson's lawsuit filed against Denver and the state's Department of Public Safety. Peterson claims that being denied a concealed weapons permit because he was not a Colorado resident violated his Second Amendment rights to bear firearms.

According to gun rights groups, Colorado is one of about two dozen states that do not honor a concealed weapons permit from Washington state.