Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Permit-to-Purchase: Oregon's Tough New Gun Law Faces Federal Court Test
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 11 months ago on
June 5, 2023

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

PORTLAND, Ore. — A federal trial over Oregon’s voter-approved gun control measure is set to open Monday in Portland, marking a critical next step for one of the toughest gun control laws in the nation after months of being tied up in the courts.

The trial, which will be held before a judge and not a jury, will determine whether the law violates the U.S. Constitution.

It comes after a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision on the Second Amendment that has upended gun laws across the country, dividing judges and sowing confusion over what firearm restrictions can remain on the books. It changed the test that lower courts had long used for evaluating challenges to firearm restrictions, telling judges that gun laws must be consistent with the “historical tradition of firearm regulation.”

The Oregon measure’s fate is being carefully watched as one of the first new gun restrictions passed since the Supreme Court ruling last June.

The legal battle over in Oregon could well last beyond the trial. Whatever the judge decides, the ruling is likely to be appealed, potentially moving all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Oregon voters in November narrowly passed Measure 114, which requires residents to undergo safety training and a background check to obtain a permit to buy a gun.

The legislation also bans the sale, transfer or import of gun magazines with more than 10 rounds unless they are owned by law enforcement or a military member or were owned before the measure’s passage. Those who already own high-capacity magazines can only possess them at home or use them at a firing range, in shooting competitions or for hunting as allowed by state law after the measure takes effect.

The Oregon Firearms Federation and a county sheriff filed the federal lawsuit in November, contending it violated the right to bear arms under the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Democratic Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and former Democratic Gov. Kate Brown are named as defendants.

It was one of several lawsuits filed over the measure.

In a separate lawsuit, filed in state court in rural and sparsely populated Harney County in southeastern Oregon, Gun Owners of America Inc., the Gun Owners Foundation and several individual gun owners claimed the law violates the Oregon Constitution.

The judge presiding over that case, Harney County Judge Robert S. Raschio, in December ordered the law to be put on hold. Because the lawsuit challenged Measure 114 under the state constitution and not the U.S. Constitution, it held precedence in the state, legal experts said. A trial is scheduled for September.

Supporters of the law say it would reduce mass shootings and other forms of gun violence as well as suicides, which the Oregon Health Authority said accounts for 82% of gun deaths in the state.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Tent Compound Rises in Southern Gaza as Israel Prepares for Rafah Offensive

DON'T MISS

Costa Seeks Legislation to Prevent Reedley Lab Repeat

DON'T MISS

Fresno Home Care Workers Threaten Civil Disobedience Over Low Pay

DON'T MISS

Sacramento Bee Accused of Mangling the Facts About Fish Caught in Pumps

DON'T MISS

Legacy of Speed: The 1,600 Horsepower 1957 ‘Skeva’ Chevy Bel Air Built in Fresno

DON'T MISS

KMJ’s Gabriel & Musson Win Radio Honors, Fresno Council Plaudits

DON'T MISS

Tabloid Publisher Says He Pledged to Be Trump Campaign’s ‘Eyes and Ears’ During 2016 Race

DON'T MISS

General Motors Reports Strong First-Quarter Profits as Prices Help Offset Small US Sales Dip

DON'T MISS

Caitlin Clark Is Set to Sign a New Nike Deal Valued at $28 Million Over 8 Years, Reports Say

DON'T MISS

Fresno’s Baklava House Entices Foodies With Its Delicious Flavors

UP NEXT

Costa Seeks Legislation to Prevent Reedley Lab Repeat

UP NEXT

Fresno Home Care Workers Threaten Civil Disobedience Over Low Pay

UP NEXT

Sacramento Bee Accused of Mangling the Facts About Fish Caught in Pumps

UP NEXT

Legacy of Speed: The 1,600 Horsepower 1957 ‘Skeva’ Chevy Bel Air Built in Fresno

UP NEXT

KMJ’s Gabriel & Musson Win Radio Honors, Fresno Council Plaudits

UP NEXT

Tabloid Publisher Says He Pledged to Be Trump Campaign’s ‘Eyes and Ears’ During 2016 Race

UP NEXT

General Motors Reports Strong First-Quarter Profits as Prices Help Offset Small US Sales Dip

UP NEXT

Caitlin Clark Is Set to Sign a New Nike Deal Valued at $28 Million Over 8 Years, Reports Say

UP NEXT

Fresno’s Baklava House Entices Foodies With Its Delicious Flavors

UP NEXT

A Far-Right German EU Lawmaker’s Aide Is Arrested on Suspicion of Spying for China

Sacramento Bee Accused of Mangling the Facts About Fish Caught in Pumps

8 hours ago

Legacy of Speed: The 1,600 Horsepower 1957 ‘Skeva’ Chevy Bel Air Built in Fresno

9 hours ago

KMJ’s Gabriel & Musson Win Radio Honors, Fresno Council Plaudits

9 hours ago

Tabloid Publisher Says He Pledged to Be Trump Campaign’s ‘Eyes and Ears’ During 2016 Race

10 hours ago

General Motors Reports Strong First-Quarter Profits as Prices Help Offset Small US Sales Dip

10 hours ago

Caitlin Clark Is Set to Sign a New Nike Deal Valued at $28 Million Over 8 Years, Reports Say

11 hours ago

Fresno’s Baklava House Entices Foodies With Its Delicious Flavors

11 hours ago

A Far-Right German EU Lawmaker’s Aide Is Arrested on Suspicion of Spying for China

11 hours ago

Wall Street Rallies and Adds to Its Hot Start to the Week

11 hours ago

The Icon Returns: Discover the All-New 2024 Land Cruiser

12 hours ago

Tent Compound Rises in Southern Gaza as Israel Prepares for Rafah Offensive

Satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press appear to show a new compound of tents being built near Khan Younis in the southern Gaza S...

5 hours ago

5 hours ago

Tent Compound Rises in Southern Gaza as Israel Prepares for Rafah Offensive

6 hours ago

Costa Seeks Legislation to Prevent Reedley Lab Repeat

7 hours ago

Fresno Home Care Workers Threaten Civil Disobedience Over Low Pay

8 hours ago

Sacramento Bee Accused of Mangling the Facts About Fish Caught in Pumps

9 hours ago

Legacy of Speed: The 1,600 Horsepower 1957 ‘Skeva’ Chevy Bel Air Built in Fresno

9 hours ago

KMJ’s Gabriel & Musson Win Radio Honors, Fresno Council Plaudits

10 hours ago

Tabloid Publisher Says He Pledged to Be Trump Campaign’s ‘Eyes and Ears’ During 2016 Race

10 hours ago

General Motors Reports Strong First-Quarter Profits as Prices Help Offset Small US Sales Dip

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend