Long a thorn in the side of lawful gun owners in California, the so-called Unsafe Handgun Act (UHA) and its “roster” of firearms allowed to be sold in California may take another step toward extinction this week. The law has nothing to do with safety anymore, but it has deprived Californians of the ability to choose a handgun appropriate to their individual needs and circumstances for years.
On Wednesday, oral arguments will be heard in the case of Boland v. Bonta, a case led by the California Rifle & Pistol Association (CRPA) challenging the law. 2ALC helped coordinate an amicus brief campaign supporting CRPA’s case.
While thousands of different model handguns can be bought throughout the rest of the country, the roster law limits a California consumer’s choice to only a few hundred models. No new models have been added for years because the law now requires any new addition to the roster to have a built-in loaded chamber indicator, a magazine disconnect safety, and microstamping. There aren’t any models with those three features available, and consumers don’t want them on their firearms anyway.
As if to underscore the arbitrary nature of the roster law’s requirements, the legislature even voted to delete three firearms from the list any time a new one with microstamping was added. Could the politicians’ intent to ban civilian handguns be any clearer?
The lawsuit and CRPA’s win in the trial court garnered national media attention, and now in the Ninth Circuit court on appeal by the state, 24 separate states banded together to file an amicus brief supporting CRPA’s case and condemning the law.
In what ought to be a crushing blow for the state’s case, the five leading law enforcement groups also filed a legal brief urging the abolishment of the roster. Lawmakers falsely claim the handgun ban law is about public safety, but those putting their lives on the line each day to protect the public oppose it. ‘Nuff said.
Thanks to our friends a CRPA for pursuing this important fight! Subscribe below to stay up to date!