SACRAMENTO, Calif. _ A federal judge Thursday granted a request by attorneys for the National Rifle Association to block a law that requires Californians to dispose of large-capacity ammunition magazines by Saturday or face fines and possible jail time.
U.S. District Judge Roger T. Benitez wrote in San Diego that the rights of voters who approved Proposition 63 in November have to be balanced against the rights of gun owners.
"If this injunction does not issue, hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of otherwise law-abiding citizens will have an untenable choice: become an outlaw or dispossess one's self of lawfully acquired property," Benitez wrote. "That is a choice they should not have to make."
C.D. Michel, an attorney for the NRA and state gun owners, welcomed the decision, which allows a lawsuit to be decided on its merits before the law takes effect.
"My clients are pleased the court affirmed that the Second Amendment is not a second-class right, and that law-abiding gun owners have a right to choose to have these magazines to help them defend themselves and their families," Michel said in a statement.
