Back in 2022, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 2571 into law, which added a new section to the California Business & Professions Code making it unlawful for any “firearm industry member” to “advertise, market, or arrange for placement of an advertising or marketing communication concerning any firearm-related product in a manner that is designed, intended, or reasonably appears to be attractive to minors.”
Newsom claimed at the time that gun makers were “openly marketing… a weapon of war” to children by pointing to the JR-15; a .22LR semi-automatic rifle produced by Wee1 Tactical that was designed for youth shooters.
This is an AR-15. A weapon of war. The gun industry is openly marketing these to KIDS. With cartoons and mini JR-15s.
These don’t belong in the hands of our kids or on our streets.
I just signed 2 bills that ban ghost guns and these sick marketing ploys. pic.twitter.com/PesYLjPlzi
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) July 1, 2022
The broad language led to sponsors pulling away from youth shooting leagues, which in turn led to many youth shooting leagues in California shutting down altogether. There were also serious concerns by gun makers and sellers that almost any form of advertising would be subject to financial penalties. Among other things, the law suggested that “caricatures that reasonably appear to be minors or cartoon characters” promoting firearm-related products, “brand name merchandise for minors, including, but not limited to, hats, t-shirts, or other clothing, or toys, games, or stuffed animals” promoting firearm-related products, and anything that “uses images or depictions of minors in advertising and marketing materials” would violate the law.
While the law didn’t ban the production or sale of youth-oriented firearms like the JR-15 or the single-shot .22LR Crickett rifle that I used to teach my own kids how to be safe and responsible with firearms, it made it virtually impossible to advertise those products, even to the adults who would be the ones purchasing them.
A number of organizations, including the California Rifle & Pistol Association and the Second Amendment Foundation, along with named plaintiff Junior Sports Magazines Inc., filed suit in federal court on the grounds that the law flagrantly infringed on the First Amendment. The case has bounced between district court and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals over the past few years, with the district court judge granting a partial injunction against some portions of the law last year (after first denying injunctive relief altogether in late 2022).
In July though, a Ninth Circuit panel ordered that a preliminary injunction be filed against all portions of the law, and yesterday the trial judge finally got around to complying with the panel’s demand and ordered “that during the pendency of this action, the named Defendant, his officers, agents, servants, employees, attorneys, and other persons in active concert with them, are hereby preliminarily enjoined and restrained from enforcing California Business &Professions Code § 22949.80, in its entirety.”
For now, California Attorney General Rob Bonta is continuing to defend the statute. In late August, the plaintiffs filed a status update with the district court stating that both sides “anticipate that this matter will be decided on a motion for judgment on the pleadings or cross-motions for summary judgment.” Now that the law has been enjoined in its entirety, we should see those motions filed in the near future.
AB 2571 isn’t just a blatant attempt to curb the speech of gun makers, distributors, sellers, and owners. It’s aimed at crippling youth shooting sports altogether. It’s great news that the entire law is now subject to a preliminary injunction, and hopefully the injunction will have a chilling effect on anti-gunners trying to put similar restrictions in place in other states.
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