California Strenthens Its Already Tight Gun Control Laws

California is the latest state to implement sweeping gun control restrictions, passing a law last week that bans the sale of high-capacity magazines, expands the definition of prohibited assault weapons, and requires background checks for the purchase of ammunition. This law was introduced in response to the mass shooting in San Bernardino late last year. As we have noted, the Supreme Court has recently upheld many of these state restrictions and it does not seem like there would be anything in this law that the Court would view unfavorably.

California has some of the toughest gun control laws in the nation and the reason for that is filled with irony. It all began in the late 1960s when Ronald Reagan was the Governor of California. The Black Panthers had recently started armed patrols in the city of Oakland that basically shadowed police on patrol. In addition, the Panthers started showing up outside courthouses and other public places with loaded weapons. In response, the legislature passed a law that banned the carrying of a loaded gun in public. The Panthers responded with an armed march to the State Capitol in Sacramento in order to try to block the bill. But Reagan signed the bill into law with the support of a majority of Republicans in California. The irony, of course, is that gun control in California was primarily implemented to control the minority population. Today, of course, gun rights advocates, especially Republicans, fight to repeal these gun control laws primarily to make sure they can control the minority population.