SCOTUS Isn’t the Only Supreme Court Hearing an Important 2A Case

While the U.S. Supreme Court has granted cert to two cases dealing with Second Amendment issues this term, the Oregon State Supreme Court will also soon consider the constitutionality of a sweeping gun control measure narrowly approved by voters three years ago. 

Measure 114 has yet to be enforced, thanks in part to an injunction issued by a Harney County judge who found the law violated the state’s constitution (a federal judge, on the other hand, has declined to issue an injunction against the law). The state legislature has also extended the effective date of Measure 114 if it is eventually upheld by the state Supreme Court, and it’s now set to take effect in March, 2026. 

Measure 114 contains multiple provisions that are being challenged in court; a permit-to-purchase regime that requires completion of classroom and live-fire training offered only by law enforcement-certified instructors before someone can purchase a firearm, a ban on ammunition magazines that can hold more than ten rounds, and record keeping requirements that will essentially create a registry of all permit-to-purchase holders throughout the state. 

Though the circuit judge ruled the law unconstitutional, a panel of the Oregon Court of Appeals overturned that decision and upheld the law. Plaintiffs appealed, and in about two weeks the Oregon Supreme Court will hear arguments about the gun control laws and their compatibility with the state constitution, which declares “[t]he people shall have the right to bear arms for the defence of themselves, and the State, but the Military shall be kept in strict subordination to the civil power.”

While the entirety of Measure 114 is being challenged, the magazine ban aspect is getting quite a bit of attention, especially since the Supreme Court could take up a challenge to California’s mag ban in the coming weeks. 

“It’s constitutional to ban large capacity magazines. So the courts are on our side generally, and the consensus is consistent,” said Elizabeth McKanna, the chairwoman of Lift Every Voice Oregon, which wrote the 2022 ballot measure. “I mean, that’s one of the reasons we put it in, is because it seemed like it was generally accepted (and) held constitutional.”  

McKanna is doubtful that California’s case will make it to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has declined to take up cases involving similar bans before. If the court were to strike down the law, however, she said the federal case involving Measure 114 could be remanded back to the district court to review “whether it should be applied differently from the way it was applied prior to any decision.”  

“I’m probably more capable of tolerating that. Having been in the law for so long, it’s always ‘hurry up and wait,’” said McKanna, a retired attorney. “But for the thousands, the millions who voted for this, it’s frustrating.”

“Millions” of people didn’t vote for Measure 114. There were 975,862 votes in favor of the measure in 2022 and 950,891 votes in opposition, meaning Measure 114 passed with less than 51% approval. As for the odds of the Supreme Court granting cert in Duncan, it’s true that SCOTUS has passed on other mag ban lawsuits in the past, but Justice Brett Kavanaugh has indicated the Court will likely take up a case dealing with so-called assault weapons and large capacity magazines “in a term or two,” and if its not Duncan there are a number of other cases that will soon get to the Court’s doorstep. 

With Measure 114 set to take effect next March I anticipate we’ll get a ruling before then, but if the Oregon Supreme Court upholds the law, the plaintiffs can appeal that decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. The federal lawsuit challenging Measure 114 is also on hold until the Duncan case has been resolved, so we can expect the legal fights to continue no matter what the state Supreme Court has to say about the magazine ban and permit-to-purchase scheme at the heart of the gun control package.  

Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.

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