On 20 December 2023 the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued a temporary injunction prohibiting enforcement of sections of SB2 dealing with prohibition of concealed carry in “sensitive areas”. The state of California with blatant disregard of citizen rights, the US Constitution, and the US Supreme Court defined “sensitive areas” as almost anywhere to which the general public has access and barred legally armed citizens from carrying in those areas effectively ending concealed carry in California. Apparently, the court believes the rulers of California must abide by the same laws under which their subjects must live. Priceless.
For those not familiar with SB2 it was one of a slate of anti-Second Amendment laws signed by Governor Newsom earlier this year. SB2 was California’s response to the Bruen decision which held that concealed carry is a right protected under the Second Amendment and citizens have the right to carry firearms for self-protection outside the home. The “sensitive area” strategy has become a staple employed by a handful of other poorly governed states to attack the Second Amendment and is being challenged and defeated in those states as well.
The US Supreme Court held in Bruen that concealed carry was indeed protected under the Second Amendment and states had to issue a concealed carry license (CCW) to any law-abiding citizen desiring one. California’s response was we’ll issue CCWs to carry anywhere it is legal to carry, it just will be illegal to carry almost anywhere.
SB2 declares most places of public access to be sensitive areas and bans concealed carry in those places. Sensitive areas include all businesses and their adjacent parking lots, places of worship, all airport property, public transportation and associated terminals and parking lots, amusement parks, arenas, and pretty much anywhere else to which the public has access. SB2 if implemented would end concealed carry in California.
A number of Second Amendment groups along with several private citizens challenged SB2 in court. The case was heard by US District Court Judge Cormac J. Carney, an increasingly rare honest judge, who ruled on the facts rather than attempting to right some perceived social wrong.
Judge Carney quickly reached the obvious conclusion that SB2 was unconstitutional and issued a preliminary injunction enjoining California from enforcing the sensitive area portions of SB2. Judge Carney wrote in his decision that SB2’s “coverage is sweeping, repugnant to the Second Amendment, and openly defiant of the Supreme Court.”
Judge Carney also concluded that “CCW permitholders are not the gun wielders legislators should fear. … Indeed, CCW permitholders are not responsible for any of the mass shootings or horrific gun violence that has occurred in California.”
It’s refreshing and unusual to see a judge or any elected leader stating facts that are considered common knowledge to most concealed carriers and many gun owners. Perhaps this is an indication that more Americans understand and support the Second Amendment than the media and the current administration would like us to believe.
So, what is the likely path forward and what does all this mean for legally armed Californians? The state will almost certainly appeal the decision and do what they can to have the appeal heard by a cooperative appeals court panel. If the appeal is heard by a group of activist judges the injunction will be lifted and all Californians will suffer the consequences. If the appeal goes before an honest court the injunction will be upheld.
Regardless the strategy of creating sensitive areas to disarm law-abiding citizens will eventually be addressed and struck down by the US Supreme Court as it is blatantly unconstitutional and flies in the face of recent US Supreme Court decisions.
In the meantime, gun owners should support Second Amendment groups like those that challenged this law. While the courts are one tool we can use to fight for our rights, they are not the long term solution. The real solution is to elect politicians who believe in and support the Constitution and throw the others out of office. Americans have the power to preserve our rights and keep our country great it’s just a question of using that power.
2024 will be a bellwether year for America. The choices are very obvious in terms of what kind of country Americans want and the results will likely be with us for a very long time. Choose wisely America.
©2023 Joseph T Drammissi
This article and more of Joe’s work covering the Second Amendment and other topics can be found on Substack at https://getagrip.substack.com
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