BELLEVUE, WA — A California appeals court panel unanimously denied a request by state attorney general Rob Bonta for an immediate stay of injunctive relief in a case brought by the Second Amendment Foundation in a challenge to the state law that allows the state Department of Justice to share personal information about firearm owners with private investigators.
Bonta asserted that the law, AB 173, “does not create a serious invasion of privacy.” The trial court disagreed and granted a preliminary injunction to the plaintiffs, suspending the application of the information sharing law. The case is known as Barba, et.al. v. Nice.
SAF is joined in the lawsuit by the Firearms Policy Coalition, Inc., California Gun Rights Foundation, San Diego County Gun Owners PAC, Orange County Gun Owners PAC, Inland Empire Gun Owners PAC, and a private citizen, Ashleymarie Barba. They are represented by attorneys Bradley A. Benbrook and Stephen M. Duvernay with Benbrook Law Group, PC in Sacramento.
“We are delighted that the appeals court panel unanimously rejected Bonta’s effort to vacate the preliminary injunction because the privacy of California gun owners is important, even if he thinks otherwise,” said the founder. and SAF Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Bonta is determined to provide information about gun owners to biased investigators who, we believe, will use it to promote further restrictions on their Second Amendment rights.”
Gottlieb rejected Bonta’s arguments that investigators take steps to protect gun owners’ identifying information.
“That’s not the point,” Gottlieb said. “The goal of our challenge is for this information to be shared, especially with non-governmental entities. It’s not just about Second Amendment rights. California law clearly threatens the privacy rights of gun owners.”
The lawsuit was filed because of a change in the California Penal Code that required the state Department of Justice to share private information about millions of gun owners in the state, with the California Gun Violence Research Center and others.
The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt legal action, research, publishing, and education group focusing on the constitutional right and inheritance to own and own guns. fire privately. Founded in 1974, the Foundation has grown to more than 720,000 members and supporters and runs many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.