OBS/PP's Amicus Curiae Brief in Duncan v. Becerra

For those of you who aren't as into gun rights as I am, Duncan v. Becerra is the name of the court case whereby the California Rifle & Pistol Association sued the state of California (Xavier Becerra is the Attorney General of California) over the constitutionality of California's ban on magazines over 10 rounds, which California called "large capacity".

When this case went to trial last year, San Diego Judge Roger Benitez ruled that California 's ban on magazines over 10 rounds violated the Second Amendment and struck the law down. This resulted in what is now known as Freedom Week, where thousands if not millions of suddenly-legal 11+ round magazines were bought by Californians. It only lasted a week before the ruling was stayed due to California filing an appeal, but by then the damage was done: countless Californians had bought them, and it would be nearly impossible to tell if these "large capacity magazines" were bought during the time it was legal to purchase them due to the fact that most magazines do not have serial numbers.

That appeal was heard last week by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, where the lower court's ruling was upheld.* Of particular interest to me, and hopefully to you as well, is the fact that the Amicus Curie brief (that's "Friend of the Court" in Latin, and it's basically a legal document which says "We aren't suing but we agree with this side, and here's our argument why you should rule in their favor") which was filed on behalf of the Pink Pistols and the National African American Gun Association for this case was quoted in the Appellate decision! 

You can see it here:

This ruling is quite frankly amazing, because not only does it explicitly state that magazines are protected under the Second Amendment, it also states that strict scrutiny should be applied to such laws. This is a massive victory for gun rights, and I hope it survives the en banc appeal.

If you'd like to read the entire 9th Circuit ruling, go here to read the PDF.

If you'd like to read our Amicus Curiae brief, go here to read the PDF.

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* The law is still on the books, however; Xavier Becerra has 14 days to file an appeal, so don't go out and buy your "large capacity" magazines just yet. I have to say that an appeal is likely, which will result in an en banc hearing whereby many of the Ninth Circuit judges hear the case. This is risky, however, because if the en banc upholds the ruling, the case will appear before the Supreme Court because there will be a Circuit split between the Ninth and the Third Circuit, which in 2018 ruled that such a magazine ban was Constitutional. The politicians in Sacramento may not want to risk a national ruling in such a manner as it could cost them allies in New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts.

Based on my understanding of the situation as told to me by pro-gun lawyer friends, this will go to en banc and there's a 50-50 chance we'll win. I like those odds.