Weekly Email 4/28/2020: Background Checks, Giving Up Our 2A Rights, Wearing Masks, COVID-19 The Latest…

Victory! Let’s buy ammo. Wait, what? Background checks are back?
Remember Freedom Week? We were able to purchase standard capacity magazines for a week? Well we just experienced Freedom 8 hours or so. It’s legal, it’s confusing and it’s frustrating. OCGO’s
Tobin Hobbs provides us with an explanation of what happen…
It may be difficult to understand the state of legal affairs with regard to California’s Prop. 63 imposed ammunition purchase background check law. Given that that the status of the law has gone back and forth in less than a span of a week, it’s little wonder that it’s difficult for many to understand the status. This article attempts to break down what happened without resorting to too much legal nuance or legal inside baseball.
Federal District Court Judge Roger Benitez was the trial judge for a case involving a challenge to the California background check law. Federal district courts are the trial level of the federal court system. They are where any case begins. Olympian Kim Rhode and others filed suit in the federal district court saying that, among other things, the California background check law had infringed their Second Amendment rights. Indeed, at trial, evidence was presented that pushing 20% of lawful purchasers had been denied the ability to purchase ammunition. That certainly sounds like a flawed law and system infringing on Second Amendment rights to us, but here it was Judge Benitez’s understanding of the law and facts that mattered. Judge Benitez did appear to agree, because for this and other reasons, Judge Benitez issued an injunction against the law, meaning that the law was no longer in effect.
From that point, Defendant, and California State Attorney General, Xavier Becerra had one option, he could seek a stay on the injunction from the trial court. That means that he could ask Judge Benitez for a stay on the order granting the injunction. Becerra made the motion for the stay on the order. Judge Benitez denied that motion. This opened up another option for Becerra; he could now apply to the 9
th Circuit Court of Appeals, the next higher level court, for an emergency motion to stay Judge Benitez’s order granting the injunction. The 9
th Circuit appoints a panel of three judges on a monthly basis to hear such motions.  April’s panel included Judge Murguia, appointed by President Obama, Judge Owens, appointed by President Obama, and Judge Bennett, appointed by President Trump. An interesting note about Judge Bennett is that the Senate approved his nomination by a vote of 72-27. The 27 votes against were all from Republican Senators due to his stance on the First and Second Amendments. More detailed information can be found in this article from the Washing Times here:
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jul/10/27-republicans-vote-against-trumps-judge-9th-circu/
One might even go so far as to call Judge Bennett a collective right enthusiast regarding the Second Amendment. Given the likely ideological bents of all three judges, it should have come as no surprise that the emergency motion was granted, ending the injunction, and restoring the California ammunition law back to the way it was before Judge Benitez’s order. While the litigation is not over, as certainly Becerra will be appealing to the 9
th Circuit, at least for now, the day or two of ammunition freedom (in fact the normal state of affairs from statehood in 1850 until roughly two years ago) is over. We will keep you updated on the case as it moves forward, particularly concentrating on how outcomes from the case affect you.
Is this the End of Guns and Ammo in California?
Assemblyman
Miguel Santiago
:A Profile of an Average Anti-Gun California Legislator.

In the interest of “public safety,” the public would no longer be able to buy, sell, or trade guns and ammunition,”
Read the rest of the story by clicking
HERE
How Fragile Our Rights
 Amid the growing (and mostly manufactured) COVID-19 crisis we again see calls to restrict the Second Amendment (2A).
CCW and a Mask. Can I legally wear one?
Many people have asked us if it’s OK to wear a mask and our CCW gun. Michael A Schwartz from OCGO explains it all in this short informative video.
Click
HERE to see the video
What’s Going On With CCWs?
From Orange County Sheriff Barnes:
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) has compelled the CCW unit to temporarily change how we conduct business.
Our mission is to provide high-quality service while taking proactive measures to maintain the mutual safety of our CCW staff and CCW applicants.  In compliance with Local, State, and Federal Guidelines, we have suspended in-person transactions and public access to the Brad Gates Building (320 N. Flower, Santa Ana).
Current CCW license holders can renew their CCW license through the website. Upon administrative approval, and after payment is received, the CCW license will be mailed to the licensee via US Postal Service.
We will continue to accept and process new applications for CCW licenses submitted online. However, new license issuance will be on hold until our CCW office reopens for public access as first-time license issuance requires in-person transactions.
Thank you for your patience and understanding. If you should have questions or concerns, please email us at
ccwpermits@ocsd.org.
IF YOU MISSED
THE LIVE FACEBOOK
EVENT WATCH IT HERE
Did you see our first PAC wide Facebook Live meting? If you missed it, here is the replay. Check it out by clicking the video. We will have another next month (and we have all the technical difficulties worked out).
OCGO YouTube Channel!
Firearms instructor Rob Pincus and former Brady Org President Dan Gross teaming up???
Listen to their interviews below and hear for yourself what that means.
Click on the video to listen and let us know what you think?
Find us at 
www.orangecountygunowners.com
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www.facebook.com/OCGunOwners
Paid for by Orange County Gun Owners Political Action Committee
P.O. Box 9431, Fountain Valley CA 92728
FPPC ID #1397127
Orange County Gun Owners PAC | (657) 223-4047 |
info@ocgunowners.com |
OCGunOwners.com