CA: 9th Circuit Hears Right to Carry Outside the Home Case

(CN) - Concerns that a limitation on concealed-carry permits in Orange County, Calif., amounts to an all-out ban did not seem to resonate with the 9th Circuit.

     A three-judge panel with the federal appeals court met this week to consider a 2012 lawsuit challenging Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchen's policy of "denying law-abiding, competent adults ... state-required licenses to carry handguns in public for the purpose of self-defense." The policy requires gun owners to prove to the sheriff that they have a valid reason to carry their gun for self defense.

     U.S. District Judge James Selna of Santa Ana had refused to issue an injunction in November after finding the claims unlikely to succeed because "California provides several exceptions to the restriction of concealed and open carry, including for self-defense and defense of the home."

     Sean Brady, an attorney for the plaintiffs with Michel & Associates, told the appellate panel that the sheriff's policy is a complete ban.

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