The Trump administration filed suit Wednesday in Los Angeles against California in a bid to halt the state’s newly enacted ban on retail sales of Glock-style pistols.
The lawsuit filed in federal court also seeks to prevent enforcement of the state’s “Handgun Roster,” a list limiting legal firearms that individuals may purchase. The U.S. Department of Justice challenges both as unlawful under the Second Amendment.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently reaffirmed that the Second and 14th Amendments protect the right to carry handguns outside the home for self-defense. The high court reiterated that states cannot prevent citizens from using commonly used firearms for such a purpose.
“The Second Amendment is a sacred right belonging to all Americans, even those in California,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement. “California cannot ban the most popular type of handgun in America. We will work to stop this blatant trampling of our rights by the California government to protect the rights of lawful gun owners.”
The lawsuit was filed Wednesday to coincide with the first day of AB 1127 going into effect. The law bans licensed firearm dealers from selling certain semiautomatic handguns, specifically Glock-style pistols. The legislation reclassifies such handguns as “machinegun-convertible pistols” due to trigger designs that can be quickly altered into fully automatic weapons.
The law strictly impacts commercial sales of fresh store inventory, while current ownership and private-party transfers remain legal.
Glocks are among the most popular handguns sold in California. The Glock’s current design allow the weapons to be easily modified with a Lego-sized piece of plastic known as a Glock Switch that can be 3-D printed to turn it into a fully automatic weapon. Such switches are already illegal, but AB 1127 outlaws the sale of any new gun with a Glock-like design.
“The Civil Rights Division will defend law-abiding citizens from states that seek to disarm them illegally,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division. “This lawsuit is yet another example of this Justice Department enforcing the Second Amendment by protecting citizens against unconstitutional state regulation of firearms.”