Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals side with Attorney General, holding that the prohibition on firearms and ammunition sales on state property does not violate the First or Second Amendments
OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta announces that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled in favor of the state defendants in B&L Productions, Inc. v. Newsom, two cases that challenged recent legislation prohibiting the sale of firearms and ammunition on state property, including at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in San Diego and the Orange County Fair & Event Center. The plaintiffs, which include a gun show promoter called B&L Productions (B&L), claimed that this sales prohibition violated their First and Second Amendment rights.
“Guns should not be sold on property owned by the state, it is that simple,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Sales of illegal firearms and ammunition, and sales of firearms and ammunition to prohibited persons, have happened on state property and these laws will further help to prevent that going forward. This is another victory in the battle against gun violence in our state and country. I am thankful for all the hard work my team has put into this case, and we will continue to fight for commonsense gun laws in our communities.”
The three laws upheld by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals were signed into law between 2019 to 2022. Assembly Bill 893 (2019), Senate Bill 264 (2021), and Senate Bill 915 (2022) prohibit the sale of firearms and ammunition at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, Orange County Fair & Event Center, and all state property, respectively. The plaintiffs, including B&L, challenged these three laws in two different district courts, and the Ninth Circuit consolidated the appeals before issuing its decision.
The California Department of Justice continues to crack down on gun violence stemming from gun shows, as shown by the below examples of recent investigations conducted by the Department of Justice:
- In August of 2023, DOJ Special Agents were conducting an enforcement operation at the Crossroads of the West Gun Show, located at the Ontario Convention Center. During the operation, agents identified a subject who was prohibited from owning or possessing firearms due to a felony conviction. Special Agents witnessed him purchase a short barreled upper receiver, a lower receiver internal parts kit, and a collapsible stock, all of which could be used in the manufacturing of an AR-15 style rifle. Special Agents requested and conducted a consent search of the subject’s residence and vehicles to ensure he was not in possession of firearms, ammunition, or ammunition magazines. They located two handguns, two rifles, including one assault weapon, one shotgun, 10 ammunition magazines, and approximately 3,000 rounds of various caliber ammunition.
- In April of 2023, DOJ Special Agents were conducting an enforcement operation at the Crossroads of the West Gun Show, located at the Ontario Convention Center. During the operation, Special Agents identified a subject who was prohibited from owning or possessing firearms due to a felony conviction and observed the subject purchasing ammunition magazines. Special Agents contacted the subject in the parking lot of the Convention Center and arrested him after it was determined he was in possession of ammunition. Special Agents obtained a search warrant for the subject's residence. As a result of the search warrant, agents seized one short barrel rifle (ghost gun), one assault weapon (ghost gun), one rifle, one shotgun, three handguns (two of which were ghost guns), six lower receivers (ghost guns), five large-capacity magazines, six standard capacity magazines, miscellaneous gun manufacturing parts, and over 700 rounds of ammunition.
- In April of 2023, DOJ Special Agents were conducting an enforcement operation at the Sacramento Gun Show, located at the McClellan Capitol Sports Center in McClellan Park, CA. During the operation, Special Agents identified several vendors that were selling illegal weapons and large-capacity magazines without having a large-capacity magazine permit. The first vendor identified was offering approximately 1,800 large-capacity magazines for sale. Another vendor was offering 62 large-capacity magazines for sale. A third vendor was offering 3,600 large-capacity magazines for sale. A fourth vendor was offering approximately 103 illegal weapons for sale, ranging from metal knuckles, cane swords, switchblades, and butterfly knives. All of the illegal items were seized by Special Agents.
- In February of 2024, DOJ Special Agents were assisting DOJ Field Representatives with a dealer inspection at the Big Chico Gun Show, located at the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds, in Chico, CA. During the inspection process, an individual was found to be attempting to sell an assault weapon and an unserialized firearm precursor part. Both items were seized by Special Agents.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals' decision can be found here.
