California: Expanded Gun-Free Zones for Concealed Carry Permit Holders Take Effect January 1, 2024
Expanded gun-free zones for California concealed carry permit holders take effect in the state January 1, 2024.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a “sensitive places” bill into law on September 26, expanding the number of gun-free zones in which licensed concealed carriers could not carry firearms for self-defense, Breitbart News reported.
On December 20, U.S. District Court Judge Cormac J. Carney issued a preliminary injunction against California’s “sensitive places” law, noting that it is “openly defiant to the Supreme Court.”
In issuing the injunction, Carney focused on the interest of self-preservation, quoting from Heller (2008) to make his point:
Contrary to this interest, [California’s ‘sensitive places’ law] requires that law-abiding citizens open themselves up for slaughter at the hands of people flaunting the law and creates numerous areas ripe for mass murder by ensuring there is no one there to protect people before “the intervention of society in his behalf.”
But Carney’s injunction was put on hold December 30, opening the door for the expanded gun-free zones to take effect January 1.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta reacted to decision that allows the new gun control to take effect, saying, “This ruling will allow our common-sense gun laws to remain in place while we appeal the district court’s dangerous ruling. Californians overwhelmingly support efforts to ensure that places like hospitals, libraries and children’s playgrounds remain safe and free from guns,” FOX News noted.
