Trump Appointed Judge Rules New Oregon Restrictive Gun-Purchase Law Constitutional

A federal judge in Oregon ruled the state's new law placing restrictions on the right to purchase and possess guns to be constitutional. The law, narrowly passed by Oregon voters in November 2022, requires safety training and pay a fee before exercising a constitutionally protected right.

Last week, U.S. District Court Judge Karin Immergut, appointed by President Donald Trump in 2019, ruled Oregon's new gun law to be constitutional. She said the law is in line with "the nation's history and tradition of regulatign uniquely dangerous features of weapons and firearms to protect public safety," the Associated Press reported.

The law was one of the first state laws passed following a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2022 (New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn. v. Bruen.) which required judges to "play historian and look to Colonial-era laws to justify the lawfulness of gun restrictions," Bloomberg Law reported.

In addition to the restrictive requirements to pay a fee and attend an in-person safety training class, the new law in Oregon bans the sale, transfer, or import of gun magazines with a capacity of more than ten rounds, the AP report states. The law provides an exemption for law enforcement, military members, or magazines owned before the law's effective date.

Those who currently own high-capacity magazines may only possess them at home, use them at a shooting range, shooting competitions, or for hunting as allowed under state law after the new measure went into effect.

Judge Immergut wrote that high-capacity magazines "are not commonly used for self-defense, and are therefore not protected by the Second Amendment." 

“The Second Amendment also allows governments to ensure that only law-abiding, responsible citizens keep and bear arms,” the judge added.