Federal judge shoots down California law banning firearms from public places

A California law that would have banned carrying firearms in most public places was blocked Wednesday by a federal judge who ruled that the legislation would violate Second Amendment rights and prevent from defending themselves – the latest salvo in the country’s long-running battle over gun control.

U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney issued a temporary block on the law, deeming it “sweeping, repugnant to the Second Amendment and openly defiant of the Supreme Court.”

Signed in September by Gov. Gavin Newsom and scheduled to go into effect Jan. 1, the legislation would have restricted the carrying of concealed guns in 26 locations, including public parks, playgrounds, banks, churches and zoos.

The rule was designed to be enforced regardless of whether individuals held a concealed carry permit, with some exceptions.

Wednesday’s ruling is considered a win for the California Rifle and Pistol Association, which filed the lawsuit opposing the legislation.

Members cited a 2022 Supreme Court decision, in the case of New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, which ruled that the city’s requirement for carrying a concealed firearm prevented law-abiding citizens from exercising their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.

“California progressive politicians refuse to accept the Supreme Court’s mandate from the Bruen case and are trying every creative ploy they can imagine to get around it,” said Chuck Michel, the California association’s president. “The Court saw through the State’s gambit.”

Michel emphasized that Wednesday’s decision enhances public safety, because allowing citizens to defend themselves serves as a deterrent to criminals.

Newsom, who has positioned himself as a national gun-control leader, previously touted evidence that gun safety laws are effective.

“While radical judges continue to strip away our ability to keep people safe, California will keep fighting — because gun safety laws work,” he earlier this year.

With News Wire Services