Attorney General Bonta: Restrictions on Large-Capacity Magazines and Assault Weapons Are Constitutional and Commonsense

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, as part of a coalition of 17 attorneys general, filed a brief in support of Illinois in Barnett v. Raoul, which is pending before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Illinois’ law bans the possession, sale, or transfer of certain assault weapons and large-capacity magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition for long guns and 15 rounds for handguns. California law also imposes similar restrictions on assault weapons and large-capacity magazines.
 
“We do not need these dangerous weapons and firearm accessories on our streets, and their use and possession are not protected by the Second Amendment,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Assault weapons and large-capacity magazines have been used in many horrific mass shootings around the country, including right here in California. I urge the Seventh Circuit to reject this effort to invalidate these life-saving prohibitions.”
 
In California, it has been illegal to manufacture, import, keep, or offer for sale, give, or lend large-capacity magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition since 2000. It has been illegal to purchase and receive large-capacity magazines since 2013. Proposition 63, which was passed by Californians in 2016, added a ban on the possession of large-capacity magazines. Since 1989, California law has restricted certain makes and models of assault weapons and, since 2000, has banned assault weapons with certain specific, combat-oriented characteristics, such as a pistol grip, folding or telescoping stock, or a flash suppressor.  
 
Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of New Jersey, Massachusetts, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai’i, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington in filing the brief.

A copy of the brief can be found here.