August 14, 2020
In a 2-1 split decision ruling, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals struck down California’s ban on large-capacity magazines (LCMs) on Friday, August 14, stating it is a violation of the Second Amendment.
The federal appeals court maintained that the state’s ban on magazines holding more than 10 rounds breached the core right of law-abiding citizens to self-defend, according to CNN.
“Armed self-defense is a fundamental right rooted in tradition and the text of the Second Amendment,” Judge Kenneth Lee wrote for the panel’s majority. Both Judge Lee and Judge Consuelo Callahan sided with the Second Amendment.
However, Judge Barbara Lynn countered and dissented that California’s ban didn’t represent any type of violation to residents of California’s Second Amendment rights.
“The difference between using a handgun versus a rifle for self-defense, for example, is much more significant than the difference between using a magazine that holds eleven rounds versus a magazine that holds ten rounds,” Lynn wrote. “For this reason, the prohibition on LCMs is more analogous to a restriction on how someone exercises their Second Amendment rights, by restricting the number of bullets a person may shoot from one firearm without reloading.”
In 2017, Virginia Duncan and others who owned LCMs filed suit against California Attorney General Xavier Becerra two months before legislation prohibiting possession of LCMs went into effect, stating it violated their Second Amendment rights, reported CNN.
Ultimately, a district court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, however, Becerra appealed the ruling to the 9th Circuit Court. That appeal was finally addressed today.
Judge Kenneth Kiyul Lee grew up in Koreatown Los Angeles during the 1992 Los Angeles Riots and witnessed first-hand, the importance of the Rooftop Koreans and the Second Amendment. He received his Bachelor’s Degree at Cornell University in 1997 and went to Harvard Law School in 2000. He is the first Korean born judge to serve on the 9th Circuit Court. He was appointed by President Donald Trump on November 13, 2018, and confirmed by the US Senate on May 15, 2019.
The vote was 52 Yea (Republican) and 43 Nay (Democratic).
Feature Image via Law