A US federal appeals court ruled Friday that California’s ban on openly carrying firearms in most parts of the state is unconstitutional, finding it violates the Second Amendment.
In a 2-1 decision, the panel in San Francisco sided with gun owners and held that the ban in counties with more than 200,000 residents infringes on constitutional gun rights. About 95% of California’s population lives in counties of that size. California has some of the strictest gun laws in the United States.
Federal Judge Lawrence VanDyke, appointed by President Donald Trump, wrote that the state law does not withstand a landmark 2022 Supreme Court ruling on gun rights. That decision, issued by a 6-3 conservative majority, established a new legal test requiring gun regulations to align with the nation’s historical tradition of firearms regulation.
VanDyke, joined by another Trump appointee, said openly carrying firearms clearly predates the Bill of Rights, which was ratified in 1791. He noted that more than 30 states generally allow open carry and that California itself permitted residents to openly carry handguns for self-defense without penalty until 2012. He concluded that history shows open carry is part of the nation’s longstanding tradition.
The ruling partially overturned a 2023 decision by a lower court that rejected a challenge to the California law. The lawsuit was filed in 2019 by a gun owner, Mark Baird.
While the appeals court largely agreed with Baird, it rejected his related challenge to California’s licensing requirements in counties with fewer than 200,000 residents, where permits for open carry may still be issued.
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Federal Judge Lawrence VanDyke
(Photo: 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals/Handout via REUTERS)
Senior Judge Randy Smith, appointed by former President George W. Bush, dissented, saying his colleagues had only partially understood the case and arguing that all of California’s restrictions comply with the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat who defended the ban, said his office is reviewing its options and remains committed to defending what he described as the state’s commonsense gun laws, according to a spokesperson.
The 2022 Supreme Court decision has triggered legal challenges to gun restrictions across the country, including in California. In San Francisco, a court in 2024 upheld a law barring people with concealed-carry permits from bringing firearms into certain sensitive locations, including bars, parks, zoos, stadiums and museums.