Well, California just took one right on the chin — and from the 9th Circuit, no less.
That’s right, the famously left-leaning appeals court just ruled that the Golden State’s first-in-the-nation law requiring background checks for ammunition purchases is unconstitutional. And folks, that’s not a minor procedural ruling — that’s a big one for the Second Amendment crowd.
In a 2-1 decision, the court upheld U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez’s permanent injunction blocking California from enforcing the law. Writing for the majority, Circuit Judge Sandra Ikuta didn’t mince words: California’s ammo background check scheme “meaningfully constrains” the right to keep and bear arms, and the state failed to prove that it lines up with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation, which is exactly what the Supreme Court required in the landmark 2022 Bruen decision.
Translation? If you want to regulate guns or ammo, you better show there’s a historical precedent — and California couldn’t.
Cue the outrage from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who called the ruling “a slap in the face” to his state’s gun-control crusade. “Strong gun laws save lives,” he fumed, doubling down on the idea that California voters approved these restrictions back in 2016, so that should settle it.
Attorney General Rob Bonta chimed in too, promising to explore “legal options” — which likely means asking for a larger 11-judge panel review or punting it to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The state’s argument? That colonial-era licensing rules for producing gunpowder and late-19th-century concealed carry regulations supported their case. The majority didn’t buy it. Dissenting Judge Jay Bybee accused his colleagues of going too far, basically saying they’ve created a test no state can meet.
On the other side, the plaintiffs — which include Olympic shooting legend Kim Rhode and the California Rifle & Pistol Association — celebrated. Rhode called it “a big win for all gun owners in California.” CRPA’s president said the ruling struck a blow against “overreaching government gun control.”
Here’s the kicker: All three judges on the panel were Republican appointees. But remember, the full 9th Circuit is still dominated by Democratic appointees, so this fight isn’t over. And you can bet the Supreme Court — with its current 6-3 conservative majority — might be licking its chops to take this one if it gets that far.
