Last year, in their ongoing efforts to shortsheet the Second Amendment at every turn, the California legislature passed a sweeping ban on the carrying of firearms in a wide variety of places. Governor Gavin Newsom signed the bill into law. But since then, the legislation has had an up-and-down journey through the court system. A U.S. District Court judge initially blocked the law on constitutional grounds. But then a panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals dissolved the judge’s temporary hold, approving the law to take effect on January 1st. Yesterday, however, a different panel from the 9th Circuit dissolved the other panel’s approval, putting the law on hold yet again.  So at least for now, legal holders of concealed carry permits will be able to exercise their Second Amendment rights in the Golden State. (AP)

A new California law that bans people from carrying firearms in most public places was once again blocked from taking effect Saturday as a court case challenging it continues.

A 9th Circuit Court of Appeals panel dissolved a temporary hold on a lower court injunction blocking the law. The hold was issued by a different 9th Circuit panel and had allowed the law to go into effect Jan. 1.

Saturday’s decision keeps in place a Dec. 20 ruling by U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney blocking the law. Carney said that it violates the Second Amendment and that gun rights groups would likely prevail in proving it unconstitutional.

The California law in question is simply ridiculous. The Democrats are attempting the same trick that their fellow travelers in other blue states have been attempting in recent years. They’ve learned the hard way that they can’t simply ban gun ownership outright without the current Supreme Court eventually raining on their parade. So they instead try to define certain “gun-free zones” where nobody is allowed to carry, even if they have a permit.

Much like Kathy Hochul in New York, the law that Newsom signed creates these gun-free zones almost everywhere. It defines 26 types of places where firearms would not be allowed. Rather than just government buildings or schools, the ban would affect public parks and playgrounds, churches, banks, and zoos, among other locations. They would make it exceedingly difficult for a concealed carry permit holder to even travel from place to place in the state without inadvertently breaking the law.

That was done intentionally, of course. If you can trap someone into violating a gun law, you then have the option of canceling their permit and forbidding them from owning firearms. And that was the entire goal from the beginning, obviously. Newsom released a statement saying, “This dangerous decision puts the lives of Californians on the line.” Of course, what’s really putting Californians’ lives at risk is a state government that refuses to crack down on crime, public drug consumption, and homelessness. That toxic combination makes the streets even more dangerous than they already were. But instead of going after actual criminals, the California legislature is trying to crack down on lawful citizens seeking to defend themselves.

These people truly have no shame. If they were being at all honest, they would admit that they know that criminals don’t pay attention to permit restrictions or signs indicating “gun-free zones.” In fact, many of them no doubt like the idea of such zones because there will be fewer victims equipped to shoot back at them. And they don’t purchase their firearms from licensed dealers or fill out application forms. Laws like this one are intended as a dodge to get around the Second Amendment and deprive people of the ability to defend themselves against the many criminals that California refuses to lock up.