Two of California’s most controversial gun control laws, banning the sale and possession of magazines holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition, are now likely to reach the U.S. Supreme Court, according to a California columnist.
Dan Walters, of the CalMatters news outlet, said a Tuesday decision by the 9th District Court of Appeals, upheld the laws, according to a column posted by The Mercury News on Friday.
He noted one of the laws was approved by the state Legislature. The other was a ballot initiative [Proposition 63] sponsored by Gavin Newsom in 2016 when the Democrat was lieutenant governor.
"In polling and by their votes, Californians have heartily endorsed making gun purchases and ownership increasingly more difficult," Walters said.
Federal Judge Roger Benitez struck down Proposition 63’s 10-round magazine limit two years ago, saying it unconstitutionally interfered with using guns for self-protection, Walters pointed out.
"Newsom had become governor when Benitez ruled and denounced the judge as a 'wholly-owned subsidiary of the gun lobby and the National Rifle Association,'" Walters said.
"On Tuesday, the full 11-judge court, dividing along ideological lines, ratified the magazine laws," he said. It declared that they "reasonably supported California’s effort to reduce the devastating damage wrought by mass shootings."
"The possibility of it becoming a landmark case was enhanced when lawyers for gun owners who challenged the state’s magazine limit immediately promised that they would appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court."
Walters said recent decisions by the Supreme Court have been "increasingly critical of restrictive gun laws." And he noted the high court has a landmark case now pending, involving New York’s ban on carrying guns outside the home.
"During arguments a few weeks ago, majority justices gave every indication they would overturn the law, criticizing it for interfering with citizens’ rights to self-defense," he said. "That’s essentially the same line of reasoning that Judge Benitez adopted in overturning California’s magazine limit."
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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