Report: 9th Circuit Court rules that shut downs of gun stores and firing ranges violated Second Amendment rights

[livingston]

Report: 9th Circuit Court rules that shut downs of gun stores and firing ranges violated Second Amendment rights​

VENTURA COUNTY, CA- On Thursday, January 20th, the Ninth Circuit federal appeals court ruled that the coronavirus lockdowns of gun stores in Ventura County, California violated constitutional rights.

The case was appealed to the Ninth Circuit after the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California rejected a claim that Ventura’s County coronavirus orders closing gun stores, ammo shops, and gun ranges violated Second Amendment rights.

“Ultimately, the issue boils down to the County’s designation of ‘essential’ versus ‘non-essential’ businesses and activities. While courts should afford some measure of deference to local policy determinations, ‘the enshrinement of constitutional rights necessarily takes certain policy choices off the table’ Heller, 554 U.S.”

“When a government completely bans all acquisition of firearms and ammunition by closing gun shops, ammunition shops, and firing ranges, it’s one of those off-limits policy choices squarely contemplated by Heller. See id. at 630. The Orders cannot satisfy strict scrutiny.”

“Not only did Appellees fail to provide any evidence or explanation suggesting that gun shops, ammunition shops, and firing ranges posed a greater risk of spreading COVID-19 than other businesses and activities deemed ‘essential,’ but they also failed to provide any evidence that they considered less restrictive alternatives for the general public.”

Report: 9th Circuit Court rules shutdowns of gun stores and firing ranges violated Second Amendment rights

9th Circuit Court rules that shutdowns of gun stores and firing ranges violated Second Amendment rights in Ventura County, California

www.lawenforcementtoday.com

 

[livingston]

California’s COVID gun store shutdowns ruled illegal​

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Two California counties violated the Constitution’s right to keep and bear arms when they shut down gun and ammunition stores in 2020 as nonessential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.

Officials in Los Angeles and Ventura counties had separately won lower court decisions saying gun stores were not exempt from broader shutdown orders aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus early in the pandemic.

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected both lower court rulings.

The decision holds that governments “cannot use a crisis to trample on the Constitutional rights of citizens,” said Michael Jean, director of the National Rifle Association’s Office of Litigation Counsel that sued in the Los Angeles County case. It also sued Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties over their restrictions in Northern California, but the last three were dismissed from the lawsuit when they repealed their orders.

Similar restrictions were imposed in 10 other states, according to the Firearms Policy Coalition, another gun owners’ rights groups that sued: Connecticut, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina and Virginia.

Losing parties can generally ask the full 9th Circuit to review the ruling by the three judges, or petition the U.S. Supreme Court. The nation’s high court has been deemed more sympathetic to gun owners in recent years.

California's COVID gun store shutdowns ruled illegal

A federal appeals court has found that two California counties violated the Constitution’s right to bear arms when they shut down gun and ammunition stores in 2020 as nonessential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.

apnews.com

 

[1075tech]

So two years after the fact, they rule it was unconstitutional. Whoopie! Annnddd, still, no one will be held accountable

 

[livingston]

So two years after the fact, they rule it was unconstitutional. Whoopie! Annnddd, still, no one will be held accountable

The way things go it could have been 10 years after the fact ..Hopefully in another national emergency gun stores cannot be closed on a whim

 

[Blimey]

It was always stupid that I could go into home depot and buy home and buy tiles to upgrade a bathroom even as other stores were deemed nonessential and had to close.

 

[Saltwater60]

It was always stupid that I could go into home depot and buy home and buy tiles to upgrade a bathroom even as other stores were deemed nonessential and had to close.

What was even dumber is that clothing wasn’t considered essential so the place 1 mile from me that’s a small business and see maybe 50 people a week it was illegal for them to say open, but you could buy clothes from Walmart and target everyday of the week. They had thousands of people in their stores daily.
Its not what it seems folks and I hope you’ve all realized that by now.

Ues this came just in time to save us all. I’m glad the ruling is there for next time because I could see them saying racial issues or the Jan 6th thing is a state of emergency or whatever and let’s close gun stores.

 

[livingston]

It was always stupid that I could go into home depot and buy home and buy tiles to upgrade a bathroom even as other stores were deemed nonessential and had to close.

This was by design my friend....Close up all the small business and let the box stores remain open .. (except for liquor stores ) All the money in a community was funneled to them and they in turn made big donations to the powers that made this possible ......

 

[MothMan]

All is good until the en banc hearing.

 

[Apeman]

This is why politicians should be held liable for damages due to their unconstitutional or illegal orders and laws. Those politicians should have to reimburse those shops for lost income. Out of pocket and not with taxpayer funds

 

[FP1201]

OK, we violated your Civil Right to buy a gun and kept the Stores closed....what are you going to do about it?
A: NOTHING SERF