“GUN MARKETING” LAW BLOCKED – ANOTHER GREAT 2A WIN!
9th Circuit Rules Against Governor and Attorney General in Junior Sports Magazine, Inc v Bonta
The 9th Circuit handed down a ruling this week that pokes Governor Gavin Newsom right in his anti-gun eye when they blocked California’s law that bans the marketing of firearms to children.
From the minute this law was introduced, Gun Owners of California fought hard against it before the Legislature. Once it passed, GOC immediately jumped on board as a plaintiff with a robust team of Second Amendment advocates, suing Rob Bonta as Attorney General of the State (Junior Sports Magazine, Inc. v Bonta).
Judge Kenneth Lee, writing for the majority, stated that “California cannot straitjacket the First Amendment by, on the one hand, allowing minors to possess and use firearms and then, on the other hand, banning truthful advertisements about that lawful use of firearms.”
Governor Newsom, however, decried the decision, calling it “pure insanity” and tossed the blame back on the 9th with the inflammatory statement that the court is “fighting to protect the marketing of weapons of war to children.”
The Governor clearly did not read the ruling, because Judge Lee made the critical point that “There is no evidence (emphasis GOC) in the record that a minor in California has ever unlawfully bought a gun, let alone because of an ad. Nor has the state produced any evidence that truthful ads about lawful uses of guns—like an ad about hunting rifles in Junior Sports Magazines’ Junior Shooters—encourage illegal or violent gun use among minors.”
Sam Paredes, GOC’s Executive Director said “If Gavin Newsom were honest, he’d acknowledge his beef is with any culture that teaches the youth of our state about the extraordinary heritage of the shooting sports – it makes him nervous. This is a huge win – and is a great example of how squelching the First Amendment spills over to the Second Amendment.”
To read the full decision, click HERE.