The second time wasn’t the charm for opponents of California’s oppressive law mandating 24/7 video AND audio surveillance of gun shops. A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district court ruling greenlighting the mandate.
Four FFLs, including two home-based operations, and a who’s who of Second Amendment organizations sued in Richards v. Newsom, but their effort was for naught.
Oppressive monitoring of California gun shops will continue
Every Golden State FFL since Jan. 1, 2024, must install and maintain a 24/7 security system that records and stores for one year all activities.
Surveillance covers entries, exits, display areas, and sales counters, and is required to record at least 15 frames per second.
Officials also collect and keep audio of gun shop conversations as part of what they deemed a public safety program. Meanwhile, customers are greeted by mandatory signs that warn that their images and conversations are monitored.
Customers warned that their conversations are recorded
A gun shop without proper security won’t be in business long, but this law is clearly over the top. It’s simply yet another state-level attack on gun rights through legislation intended to suppress the freedom to keep and bear arms.
After the district court defeat, the plaintiffs sought protection from California’s draconian gun control regime through the Ninth Circuit.
Judge Kenneth K. Lee disagreed with his colleagues’ finding that the system does not chill free speech in a location where customers should feel perfectly free to talk about virtually anything.
He noted that these establishments thrive on the principles the Founders set forth in the Second Amendment. Lee acknowledged the potential benefits of video monitoring that most shops would have regardless but stopped short of endorsing eavesdropping.
Which is exactly what California officials are doing under the guise of public safety.
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