Yet another example of why the NRA is THE organization for protecting 2nd amendment rights.
NRA Wins Big in California State Court of Appeals
Fairfax, VA - The California State Court of Appeals announced today their decision to overturn one of the most restrictive gun bans in the country, following a legal battle by attorneys for the National Rifle Association (NRA) and a previous court order against the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
"Today's decision by the California State Court of Appeals is a big win for the law-abiding citizens and NRA Members of San Francisco," declared Chris W. Cox, NRA's chief lobbyist.
In 2005, NRA sought an injunction against the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to prevent them from enacting one of the nation's most restrictive gun bans. NRA won the injunction, but the City's mayor and Board of Supervisors ignored the court order and approved a set of penalties, including a $1,000 fine and a jail term of between 90 days and six months, for city residents who own firearms for lawful purposes in their own homes.
"We promised our California NRA members in 2005 that we would fight any gun ban instituted by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, and we haven't given up that fight," continued Cox. "Today we see our second win for the Second Amendment against the San Francisco gun ban. We beat them once in court and the City's attorney appealed based on his personal disagreement with the court's first decision to overturn the ban. Now we've beaten them again. The California State Court of Appeals has upheld the state preemption law."
Today's decision came in the form of a 3-0 opinion in favor of the lower court ruling overturning the gun ban.
"This decision is a thoughtful and well-reasoned legal opinion," concluded Cox. "I'd like to thank our approximately 4 million members, including the hundreds of thousands of members in California, for their continued commitment to protecting our cherished freedoms."
-nra-
opinion can be read here... http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/opinions...ts/A115018.PDF
cliffnotes version...
H. Conclusion
We, therefore, affirm the trial court’s conclusion that Prop H is invalid as preempted by state law. As the City repeatedly emphasizes, the statutes governing firearms have been “carefully worded to avoid any broad preemptive effect.” (CRPA, supra, 66 Cal.App.4th at p. 1314.) Nevertheless, the sheer breadth of Prop H makes it vulnerable to a preemption challenge. As already noted, Section 2 of Prop H bans the “sale, manufacture, transfer or distribution” of ammunition and firearms in the City, without exception. (Italics added.) With narrow exceptions, Section 3 bans the possession of handguns by San Francisco residents, including possession within the sanctity of homes, businesses, and private property. (Italics added.) We wish to stress that the goal of any local authority wishing to legislate in the area of gun control should be to accommodate the local interest with the least possible interference with state law. As we have seen, while courts have tolerated subtle local encroachment into the field of firearms regulation (CRPA, Great Western, Nordyke), laws which significantly intrude upon the state prerogative have been uniformly struck down as preempted (Doe, Sippel). Therefore, when it comes to regulating firearms, local governments are well advised to tread lightly.
NRA Wins Big in California State Court of Appeals
Fairfax, VA - The California State Court of Appeals announced today their decision to overturn one of the most restrictive gun bans in the country, following a legal battle by attorneys for the National Rifle Association (NRA) and a previous court order against the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
"Today's decision by the California State Court of Appeals is a big win for the law-abiding citizens and NRA Members of San Francisco," declared Chris W. Cox, NRA's chief lobbyist.
In 2005, NRA sought an injunction against the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to prevent them from enacting one of the nation's most restrictive gun bans. NRA won the injunction, but the City's mayor and Board of Supervisors ignored the court order and approved a set of penalties, including a $1,000 fine and a jail term of between 90 days and six months, for city residents who own firearms for lawful purposes in their own homes.
"We promised our California NRA members in 2005 that we would fight any gun ban instituted by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, and we haven't given up that fight," continued Cox. "Today we see our second win for the Second Amendment against the San Francisco gun ban. We beat them once in court and the City's attorney appealed based on his personal disagreement with the court's first decision to overturn the ban. Now we've beaten them again. The California State Court of Appeals has upheld the state preemption law."
Today's decision came in the form of a 3-0 opinion in favor of the lower court ruling overturning the gun ban.
"This decision is a thoughtful and well-reasoned legal opinion," concluded Cox. "I'd like to thank our approximately 4 million members, including the hundreds of thousands of members in California, for their continued commitment to protecting our cherished freedoms."
-nra-
opinion can be read here... http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/opinions...ts/A115018.PDF
cliffnotes version...
H. Conclusion
We, therefore, affirm the trial court’s conclusion that Prop H is invalid as preempted by state law. As the City repeatedly emphasizes, the statutes governing firearms have been “carefully worded to avoid any broad preemptive effect.” (CRPA, supra, 66 Cal.App.4th at p. 1314.) Nevertheless, the sheer breadth of Prop H makes it vulnerable to a preemption challenge. As already noted, Section 2 of Prop H bans the “sale, manufacture, transfer or distribution” of ammunition and firearms in the City, without exception. (Italics added.) With narrow exceptions, Section 3 bans the possession of handguns by San Francisco residents, including possession within the sanctity of homes, businesses, and private property. (Italics added.) We wish to stress that the goal of any local authority wishing to legislate in the area of gun control should be to accommodate the local interest with the least possible interference with state law. As we have seen, while courts have tolerated subtle local encroachment into the field of firearms regulation (CRPA, Great Western, Nordyke), laws which significantly intrude upon the state prerogative have been uniformly struck down as preempted (Doe, Sippel). Therefore, when it comes to regulating firearms, local governments are well advised to tread lightly.
