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A 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel on a 2-1 vote stayed
last week's ruling by U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez in San
Diego holding that the background checks law violated the right
the bear arms protected by the U.S. Constitution's Second
Amendment.
The Democratic-led state had asked the 9th Circuit to intervene
and issue a stay while it appealed what officials called a
"dangerous" ruling by Benitez, an appointee of Republican former
President George W. Bush who has ruled against other gun control
measures in the past.
Monday's decision was issued by U.S. Circuit Judges Richard
Clifton and Holly Thomas, both appointees of Democratic
presidents. U.S. Circuit Judge Consuelo Callahan, another Bush
appointee, dissented, saying the state had not shown a
likelihood of success on appeal.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, in a post on
the social media platform X said the ruling meant that the
state's "life-saving ammunition laws will remain in effect as we
continue to defend them in court."
Plaintiffs challenging the law in court included Kim Rhode, who
has won three Olympic gold medals in shooting events, and the
California Rifle & Pistol Association.
Chuck Michel, the group's president and general counsel, in a
statement said it will seek further review by a different panel
of the court and "restore the people's right to buy the
ammunition they need for sport or to defend their families."
California voters had in 2016 approved a ballot measure
requiring gun owners to undergo initial background checks to buy
ammunition, and pay $50 for a four-year ammunition permit.
Legislators amended the measure to require background checks for
each ammunition purchase, starting in 2019.
Benitez's Jan. 30 ruling was the latest court decision declaring
a gun restriction unconstitutional following the
conservative-majority Supreme Court's June 2022 ruling in New
York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.
That ruling recognized for the first time that the Second
Amendment protects an individual's right to carry a handgun in
public for self-defense. It also established a new test for
assessing firearms laws, saying restrictions must be "consistent
with this nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation."
Benitez in his decision rejected California's reliance on dozens
of laws dating back to 1789 as "historical analogues" for
ammunition checks and said the law had "no historical pedigree."
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; editing by Miral Fahmy)
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