California's "one in 30 days" gun restriction scheme didn't pass the smell test in a federal appeals court. 

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals last week weighed in on Nguyen v. Bonta, a constitutional challenge to California's ban on purchasing more than one handgun or semi-automatic centerfire rifle in 30 days. The unanimous three-judge panel upheld a lower court ruling and struck down the limit as not in line with the right to keep and bear arms. 

"California’s law is facially unconstitutional because possession of multiple firearms and the ability to acquire firearms through purchase without meaningful constraints are protected by the Second Amendment and California’s law is not supported by our nation’s tradition of firearms regulation," said Circuit Judge Danielle J. Forrest in the Court’s decision, which Judges John B. Owens and Bridget S. Bade joined. Notably, while Forrest and Bade were appointed to the bench by President Trump during his first term, Owens was appointed in 2014 by President Obama. 

Forrest, in her 24-page opinion for the court, pointed out how the language of the Second Amendment uses the term "arms," which is a plural reference. 

"California’s interpretation would mean that the Second Amendment only protects possession of a single weapon of any kind," said Forrest. "There is no basis for interpreting the constitutional text in that way."

The bill, signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2019, had been vetoed three times by Gov. Jerry Brown as pro-gun groups argued it would impact everything from Boy Scout groups to funds for conservation, which come in part from a federal excise tax on firearms sold in the state.

The case was filed by six individuals and supported by a variety of pro-gun groups, including the Firearms Policy Coalition, the San Diego County Gun Owners Political Action Committee, and the Second Amendment Foundation. 
 

"There was no doubt the one-gun-per-month restriction was put in place to circumvent the ability of citizens to exercise their full Second Amendment rights," SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb told Guns.com via email. "This ruling is a victory for all who believe in the fundamental right to keep and bear arms, and we look forward to continuing to restore the Second Amendment rights of people across the nation through our more than 55 active cases."

Gottlieb, who is also chair of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, said the ruling from the historically left-leaning Ninth Circuit is a proverbial "shot across the bow" of anti-gun groups in western states. 

“We are encouraged by the Appeals Court panel’s ruling,” Gottlieb said, “because it puts a serious roadblock in the path of gun prohibition extremists who have convinced Democrats up and down the West Coast they should treat the right to keep and bear arms as a government-regulated privilege."
 

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