Late last month, U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi announced that the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division filed a federal lawsuit against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD), citing a “pattern or practice of infringing the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens seeking concealed carry weapons (CCW) permits.”
The six-month federal investigation found “unreasonable delays” in how the LASD issued CCW permits. Records revealed that only two permits had been approved out of more than 8,000 applications, and in some cases, the department waited over two years to even interview applicants.
“The Second Amendment protects the fundamental constitutional right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms,” Bondi said in a DOJ press release. “Los Angeles County may not like that right, but the Constitution does not allow them to infringe upon it.”
This case is long overdue. In fact, it may be the first affirmative lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice on behalf of gun owners. For thousands of Los Angelenos waiting for a CCW, this could finally bring relief — and it might force other California agencies to expedite their own permitting processes before the feds come knocking.
But Is That Enough?
While CCW delays are a serious issue, they represent just one symptom of California’s larger anti-gun disease.
California’s labyrinth of firearm restrictions continues to strip its 39 million citizens of their Second Amendment rights. The state’s infamous Roster of Handguns Certified for Sale is a prime example.
Since January 1, 2001, no handgun can be sold or even manufactured in California unless it passes state-approved firing, safety, and drop tests. As California Attorney General Rob Bonta himself warns, “no handgun may be manufactured, imported, lent, or sold unless that handgun model has been certified by the Department of Justice.”
How is that not a direct violation of the Second Amendment?
Then there’s California’s assault weapons ban — which outlaws AKs, ARs, HKs, CETMEs, and countless other semi-automatic rifles, along with any handgun capable of accepting magazines over ten rounds. The state also bans so-called “high-capacity” magazines, a wide range of ammunition types, and even certain short-barreled firearms and polymer-frame pistols.
Again: how do these not violate the Second Amendment?
A Path Forward for the DOJ
Newly appointed Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Kaur Dhillon, a former vice chair of the California Republican Party, now leads the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division — and she’s uniquely positioned to tackle these abuses head-on.
“The Second Amendment is not a second-class right,” Dhillon stated. “This lawsuit seeks to stop Los Angeles County’s egregious pattern and practice of delaying law-abiding citizens from exercising their right to bear arms.”
Dhillon’s next move could be critical. As head of the Special Litigation Section, she commands a team of federal prosecutors and investigators capable of going after law enforcement agencies that violate constitutional rights. This section’s charter allows it to investigate how state and local departments treat citizens — and it has the authority to enforce federal consent decrees or file lawsuits when agencies refuse to comply.
That’s exactly what happened with the Ville Platte, Louisiana, Police Department and the Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office after a 2016 investigation revealed unlawful detentions and coerced statements. It took nearly a decade, but the DOJ ultimately forced both agencies into compliance.
If the DOJ applies that same approach in California, the potential impact is enormous. The Special Litigation Section could target other counties and agencies enforcing unconstitutional state gun laws — from handgun rosters and mag bans to so-called assault weapon restrictions.
Time to End California’s Gun-Control Madness
California’s “compliance culture” has long been a stain on the Constitution. The DOJ now has an opportunity — and an obligation — to fix it.
If Dhillon’s Civil Rights Division expands beyond CCW delays and investigates the broader landscape of California’s anti-gun laws, it could restore the Second Amendment rights of tens of millions of citizens.
It’s time for the federal government to treat gun rights as civil rights — because that’s exactly what they are.
The Special Litigation Section has never lost a case. Maybe it’s time they made California their next win.
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