Oregon judge says voter-approved gun law violates state constitution

An Oregon state judge on Tuesday ruled that a series of gun control provisions passed by voters last year violates the state’s constitution, preventing the measure from taking effect.

Measure 114 — passed by a slim margin — would require individuals to first complete a training course and pass a background check before purchasing a firearm in the state. It also implements a ban on high-capacity magazines.

Gun rights advocates and others quickly challenged the provisions, and Harney County Circuit Court Judge Robert Raschio last December temporarily blocked the measure’s enforcement, just before it was set to take effect.

After conducting a trial this fall, Raschio on Tuesday issued his final decision, finding the measure violated the Oregon Constitution’s guarantee that the people “shall have the right to bear arms for the defence of themselves.”

“Oregon citizens have a right to self-defense against an imminent threat of harm, which is unduly burdened by Ballot Measure 114,” Raschio wrote in his 44-page ruling.

Both sides had acknowledged that the measure would delay someone from purchasing a firearm for a minimum of 30 days.  Raschio wrote that the state failed to provide “any convincing evidence of a threat to public safety requiring a permitting process."

Providing an extensive historical analysis of gun restrictions when the Oregon Constitution was adopted in 1857, Raschio also found the ban on magazines with more than 10 rounds was unconstitutional.

“Magazines, along with the rest of a firearm’s components, are protected arms under Article |, § 27. There is no historical basis for limiting the size and capacity of firearms, including their magazines,” Raschio wrote.

In July, a federal judge ruled that the provisions did not violate the federal Constitution’s Second Amendment. That case is now before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

But Raschio’s ruling prevents Oregon from implementing Measure 114 regardless of how that case ultimately shakes out.

“The Harney County judge’s ruling is wrong. Worse, it needlessly puts Oregonians’ lives at risk. The state will file an appeal and we believe we will prevail,” Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum (D) said in a statement.

Updated: 10:31 a.m.