California law banning most firearms in public is taking effect as the legal fight over it continues
LOS ANGELES — A California law banning people from carrying firearms in most public places will take effect on New Year's Day, even as a lawsuit continues to challenge the law.
A U.S. district judge ruled on Dec. 20 to block the law from taking effect. He says it violates the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and deprives people of the ability to defend themselves and their loved ones.
But on Saturday, a federal appeals court temporarily halted the district judge's ruling. The appeals court decision allows the law to come into effect while the legal battle continues. Attorneys are expected to file arguments with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in January and February.
The law, signed by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, bans people from carrying concealed weapons in 26 places, including public parks and playgrounds, churches, banks and zoos.
The ban applies regardless of whether the person has a permit to carry a concealed weapon. An exception applies to private businesses that post signs stating that people are allowed to bring guns onto their premises.
“This ruling will allow our common-sense gun laws to remain in place as we appeal the district court's dangerous ruling,” Newsom posted on X, formerly Twitter, after the appeals court took action Saturday. “Californians overwhelmingly support efforts to ensure that places like hospitals, libraries and children's playgrounds remain safe and free of guns.”
The California Rifle and Pistol Association has filed a lawsuit to block the law. When U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney issued a preliminary injunction blocking the law, he wrote that the law was “sweeping, inconsistent with the Second Amendment, and openly contrary to the Supreme Court.”
Carney wrote that gun rights groups would likely succeed in proving it unconstitutional, meaning it would be permanently overturned.
The law revises California's rules for concealed carry permits in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, which sent several states rushing to respond with their own laws. That decision stated that the constitutionality of gun laws should be assessed by whether they are “consistent with the country's historical tradition of firearms regulation.”
Newsom has said he will continue to push for stricter gun measures.
Newsom has positioned himself as a national leader on gun control as he faces increasing scrutiny as a potential presidential candidate. He has called for and signed a variety of bills, including measures against untraceable “ghost guns,” marketing firearms to children and allowing people to file lawsuits over gun violence. That legislation was based on an anti-abortion law from Texas.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta appealed Carney's decision. Bonta, a Democrat, said that if the district judge's ruling blocking the law were upheld, it would “endanger communities by allowing guns in places where families and children gather.”
California Pistol and Rifle Association President Chuck Michel said in a statement that under the law, gun permit holders “would not be able to drive through the city without going through a restricted area and breaking the law.” Michel said criminals are deterred when law-abiding citizens can defend themselves.