Judge upholds stringent Oregon gun control law as constitutional

A federal judge on Friday found Oregon’s new gun law — which bans large capacity magazines and requires residents to obtain a permit to purchase firearms – does not violate the Second Amendment.

After a week-long trial, U.S. District Court Judge Karin Immergut in a 122-page order found that the law keeps up with “the nation’s history and tradition of regulating uniquely dangerous features of weapons and firearms to protect public safety.”

The law, Measure 114, bans the sale, transfer and import of gun magazines with more than 10 rounds for residents that are not members of the military or law enforcement.

The measure, however, will not require current gun owners with high-capacity magazines to turn over their firearms, but does bar them from removing the weapons from their home for anything other than practicing at a firing range, in shooting competitions or for hunting, according to the Associated Press.

Guns with high-capacity magazines are “not commonly used for self-defense, and are therefore not protected by the Second Amendment,” Immergut wrote in her ruling. “The Second Amendment also allows governments to ensure that only law-abiding, responsible citizens keep and bear arms.”

The lawsuit, filed in November by the Oregon Firearms Association, argued that the gun control law violated the Constitution. In response to Friday’s ruling, the group said it “wasn’t entirely unexpected.”

“What we have read defies belief. While not entirely unexpected, Immergut’s ruling is simple nonsense and sure to be overturned at the 9th circuit,” the group wrote in a statement posted to their website. “When faced with the clear and undeniable issues about all magazines being banned and the permit system being completely unworkable, she essentially said ‘not my problem.'”

“We are sure there will be plenty of parsing of this absurd decision in the coming days, but it was clear from the very first day that Immergut was both painfully ignorant and in the pocket of Oregon’s far left ‘Department of Justice,'” the organization added.

A separate suit was filed by the Gun Owners of America Inc., the Gun Owners Foundation and several individual gun owners, which claimed the law violates the Oregon Constitution, AP reported.

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum praised Friday’s ruling, acknowledging that the law cannot move forward until the trial — scheduled for September — is held in a lower court.

“For now, Measure 114 remains on hold due to a state court order from Harney County. But our team looks forward to ultimately prevailing in the state courts as well,” she wrote.

The news comes as President Biden continues to up pressure on lawmakers to pass gun reform legislation as 2023 gears up to be one of the deadliest years in history for gun violence.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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