SAN DIEGO, Calif. (CNS) — The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that California's law requiring background checks for people purchasing ammunition is unconstitutional, upholding a San Diego federal judge's previous ruling that struck the law down.
Thursday's ruling stems from a lawsuit brought in San Diego by a coalition of gun owners and gun rights groups that alleged the law infringed on the Second Amendment rights of California residents, while the California Attorney General's Office argued the law was a safety measure that prevented people who shouldn't have firearms and ammunition from obtaining them.
The law was struck down twice by U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez, who has frequently ruled in favor of firearm advocates seeking to overturn state laws regarding gun and ammunition ownership or purchases.
In Thursday's ruling, which upheld Benitez's permanent injunction blocking the law, Judge Sandra Ikuta wrote in the majority opinion that California's background check requirement was not consistent with the country's historical traditions of firearm regulation, a finding that reflects a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that said firearm cases should be evaluated based on how other firearm cases have been decided historically.
"By subjecting Californians to background checks for all ammunition purchases, California's ammunition background check regime infringes on the fundamental right to keep and bear arms," wrote Ikuta.
Judge Jay S. Bybee dissented, writing that the background check law does not constrain the right to keep and bear arms, like a law imposing a blanket ban might. Bybee wrote that "The vast majority of (California's) checks cost one dollar and impose less than one minute of delay."
Chuck Michel, president of the California Rifle & Pistol Association, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, wrote in a Thursday morning social media post, "This is a huge win. The state will likely appeal en banc, so we have to keep fighting, but this law will fall!"
Kim Rhode, an Olympic medal-winning skeet shooter and one of the lawsuit's plaintiffs, said in a statement, "This is a big win for all gun owners in California. Once again, California has been found to be wanting, and the courts, with proper review, noted that gun owners have the law on our side."
Dan Wolgin, CEO of Florida-based ammo supplier Ammunition Depot, which was another plaintiff in the suit, said, "We are thrilled by this victory, which stands as a testament to the power of the Constitution...This decision sends a clear message that our constitutional rights are not up for debate or negotiation."
California Attorney General Rob Bonta's office could not immediately be reached for comment.
Everytown Law, a gun violence prevention organization, said that per a recent California DOJ report on the state's background check system, 191 people who were prohibited from owning firearms or ammunition were denied ammo purchases last year as a result of the background checks.
Janet Carter, Everytown Law's managing director of Second Amendment Litigation, said Bybee's dissent, "along with the Supreme Court's favorable discussion of background checks more generally, make clear that the law is constitutional. And it makes Californians far safer. ... Background checks for ammunition sales are common sense, and we urge the Ninth Circuit to rehear this case en banc and uphold this important law."
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