November 18, 2013: Earlier this month Renzulli Law Firm offered insights on what the future holds for the firearms industry. Speaking at the National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers Expo, John Renzulli and Christopher Renzulli addressed a group of expo attendees in regards to recently passed legislation, its impact on the firearms industry and strategies for managing a business amidst these ongoing changes. RLF will also be presenting at January’s annual SHOT Show. For more information about upcoming presentations, contact John F. Renzulli or Christopher Renzulli.
Last week, a California Appellate Court struck down a California law that would require all purchases of ammunition “principally for use” in handguns to be made in person rather than by mail order or on the Internet, and would also require buyers of ammunition to be thumb-printed and sellers to keep records of the transactions. The law, which was enacted in 2010, was declared unconstitutionally vague by a trial court judge before it was set to become effective in 2011.
The appellate court majority opinion, written by Justice Gene Gomes, echoed that ruling finding that the state had failed to provide “a common understanding or objective meaning of the term ‘handgun ammunition.'” As such, the court held that the law’s vague wording could lead to inconsistent and unpredictable enforcement, and could make compliance difficult or impossible for mail-order and Internet ammunition sellers. Notably, a legislative effort to moot the trial court’s ruling by specifying the types of ammunition covered by the law was vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2011, and a bill that would have required record-keeping and purchaser identification for all ammunition sales, in person or online, stalled in the state Assembly this year. Given these failed efforts, the state attorney general’s office could appeal the ruling to the California Supreme Court.