Oregon Judge Dishes Out Legal Damage Against Anti-Gun Measure 114
Jose Nino
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On January 3, 2023, an Oregon judge refused to rescind his order that temporarily halted part of a new gun control measure that voters recently approved.
Measure 114 requires that Oregon residents complete a background check before they purchase or transfer a firearm.
On a previous occasion, Harney County Judge Robert S. Raschio gave a black eye to gun control proponents when he placed a hold on all other provisions of the gun grab, which includes a permit-to-purchase provision and a prohibition on high-capacity magazines.
On December 23, 2022, he heard oral arguments from the state of Oregon on a motion to let the law’s background check provision go into effect even as the constitutionality of the Measure 114′s other provisions were reviewed by the courts. Per federal law, firearms vendors can sell firearms without a completed background check if the check goes beyond three business days. Oregon’s new law would do away this practice.
In December, Raschio paused all provisions of the Oregon gun grab. He issued a preliminary injunction against the limitations on the sale, manufacture and use of high-capacity magazines and a temporary restraining order on the mandate that a permit be obtained to purchase a firearm.
In the opinion issued on January 3, Raschio said he would reconsider scrapping the background check provision of the law from the rest of the law only in the case that permit-to-purchase provision was determined to be unconstitutional.
Gun Owners of America Inc., the Gun Owners Foundation, and several individual gun owners filed the lawsuit in Harney County. In this lawsuit, the plaintiffs sought to place the entire law on hold as its constitutionality is determined.
According to the Associated Press Measure 114 does the following:
…requires a permit, criminal background check, fingerprinting and hands-on training course for new firearms buyers. It also bans the sale, transfer or import of gun magazines over 10 rounds unless they are owned by law enforcement or a military member or were owned before the measure’s passage. Those who already own high-capacity magazines can only possess them in their homes or use them at a firing range, in shooting competitions or for hunting as allowed by state law after the measure takes effect.
Oregon is a thoroughly anti-gun state. According to Guns & Ammo magazine’s best states for gun owners rankings, Oregon is ranked in 36th place. The Oregon Legislative Assembly is dominated by Democrats in the Senate (17-12-1) and in the House (35-24), so there’s very little chance of pro-gun reforms being passed here. As a result, gun owners will have to turn to the courts or reject gun control via nullification to see any meaningful changes on gun policy.
That’s how the cookie is crumbling in anti-gun blue states these days.
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