Sacramento, CA –-(Ammoland.com)- Just when residents of San Diego thought they finally had won back the right to bear arms in the county, state politicians used dirty tactics to block it.
Late last Thursday, California State Attorney General Kamala Harris filed a petition on behalf of the state to ask the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review and reverse its decision in Peruta v. County of San Diego.
That ruling two weeks ago said the county’s restrictive concealed carry permit laws that required “good cause” were unconstitutional. This comes just one week after San Diego Sheriff Bill Gore said he would not seek en banc review and would start issuing permits based on self-defense once the appeals court decision was finalized.
Ms. Harris wrote in the filing that the state should be allowed to intervene in the case because “this case draws into question the constitutionality of the State’s statutory scheme regulating the public carrying of firearms.” She added that the “existing parties will not adequately represent the State’s interests.”
Chuck Michel is the west coast counsel for the National Rifle Association, which funded the lawsuit. He said Ms. Harris‘ motion to intervene was far out of line because her office wasn’t part of the lawsuit, despite repeated requests from both plaintiffs and Sheriff Gore to get involved.
“They are trying to improperly influence the court,” Mr. Michel said in an interview. “They are stretching the rules to file in order to get their arguments in front of the court in the hopes that a liberal judge will get the message and ask for a vote himself.”
Since Sheriff Gore did not ask for review, the only way for a hearing by a larger panel of justices in the 9th Circuit is if one asks to go en banc. Other gun grabbers have joined with the attorney general in this backdoor appeal. The Brady Campaign asked for consent to intervene on Thursday. A police association that was an amicus to the court, but not a party to the lawsuit, also filed an en banc review.
“Obviously, what this tells us is the folks that advocate civilian disarmament are upset about the opinion and want to throw everything they can at it to bottle up the 9th Circuit or get it overturned,” said Mr. Michel, whose firm, Michel and Associates, represented the plaintiffs in the Peruta case up to the appeals court level. The Circuit Court judges have until March 7 2014 to ask for a vote on rehearing the case.
California politicians are notoriously anti-gun and have had a long run on infringing on the rights of citizens on the west coast, so it should be no surprise that Ms. Harris would use deceitful tactics to try to keep hold of gun control laws that seem to be slipping from her grip. But the justices ought not to play petty political games and let stand the ruling that gives the people of San Diego the ability to defend themselves outside the home.
Emily Miller is senior editor of opinion for The Washington Times and author of “Emily Gets Her Gun” (Regnery, 2013).
Read more: https://www.
The CRPA Foundation is a named plaintiff in this case. To help with the continued fight click here.
About:
The California Rifle and Pistol Association “CRPA,” founded in 1875, is dedicated to defending the rights of law-abiding citizens to responsibly use firearms for self-defense and the defense of their loved ones, for sport, and for all other legal activities. CRPA is the official state association of the National Rifle Association. A California non-profit association, CRPA is independently directed by its own Board of Directors. CRPA’s members include law enforcement officers, prosecutors, professionals, firearm experts, the general public, and loving parents. CRPA has always worked to reduce the criminal misuse of firearms and firearms accidents, while actively promoting and organizing the competitive shooting sports and Olympic training programs in California. We are proud to say that many CRPA competitors are among the best in the world. Visit: www.crpa.org
Pamela Harris is scum. A few years ago she took the death penalty off the table for a multiple time felon that killed 3 cops with an AK because she’s against it. This was when the dirtbag was DA of San Fransisco. Glad to see she’s a consistent left wing whack job.
Is she a member of a “Monochrome Coalition”?
Charlie, I went to your web site. Wow, lot’s of solid information. Not sure the inference of NRA questionable information posted here. Please go on. Is the NRA (I’m a member) have a “Cloud”?
Oh my God. The sheriffs lic’ing dept. has been flooded with applications. My wife and I called in the day the ruling was posted and were given an appointment. Than few days later we were called to indicate there would be “No” appointment. Fill out the form that is required all sections including signatures and the areas the interviewing person was to fill out. I called to confirm even the signatures that have to be signed at that interview. I was told “The clerk at the front desk will verify when we call you in” ?????What any of us do?… Read more »
Let us not forget that in the Peruta lawsuit the NRA/CRPA argued to uphold the racist 1967 ban on Loaded Open Carry. The same ban the NRA endorsed back in 1967. The NRA/CRPA lawyer Chuck Michel testified before a hearing of the California legislature saying that if the unloaded handgun Open Carry ban were enacted he would sue. That was for the benefit of gullible NRA members. Not only did neither he nor the NRA/CRPA sue to overturn the ban, they opposed the only lawsuit seeking to overturn the bans on Loaded and Unloaded Open Carry – Nichols v. Brown… Read more »