San Diego Sheriff Bill Gore has chosen not to appeal [pdf] last week’s 9th Circuit ruling, in which California’s “good cause” requirement for concealed carry permits was ruled unconstitutional. Ventura and Orange counties have also dropped the clause.
Does this make California shall-issue? Not yet. Dissenting judges in the 9th Circuit can still demand an en banc rehearing of the case. Given the forcefulness of O’Scannlain’s opinion, that might be a hard one, but I wouldn’t put it past someone to try. I can imagine the political pressure will be significant.
There are also methods by which Sheriffs can obstruct the process through other means. California Penal Code is full of all sorts of potential obstacles. The first is their ability to make the training requirement overly burdensome.
26165 (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the licensing authority may require a community college course certified by the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, up to a maximum of 24 hours, but only if required uniformly of all license applicants without exception.
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