November 17, 2014:
9th Circuit Rules Concealed Carry Laws May Not Be Challenged
This week, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals denied attempts by California Attorney General Kamala Harris, gun control groups and law enforcement associations to challenge a previous ruling which struck down restrictive regulations on concealed firearms. In what is being hailed as a victory for firearm advocates, the 9th Circuit panel ruled 2-1 that San Diego County’s policy requiring law-abiding firearm owners to show a specific need for protection in order to carry concealed firearms violated the 2nd Amendment’s guarantee of the right to bear arms, and disallowed intervention requested by anti-gun representatives. Although the ruling only technically applied to San Diego County, it is being widely-considered as a precedent in other challenges to similar laws around the State of California. A copy of the 9th Circuit ruling can be found here.
PA Cities Sue to Overturn Firearm Legislation
The cities of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Lancaster filed a lawsuit earlier this week against members of the Pennsylvania state legislature in an effort to thwart what the NRA has deemed “the strongest firearms preemption statute in the country.” The lawsuit seeks to overturn an amendment to House Bill 80, signed into law last week by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett (R), which allows members of firearm organizations to stand in for local citizens who have brought actions challenging city and county firearm ordinances that supersede state law. The amended version of HB 80 can be found here.