SAF ISSUES TRAVEL ADVISORY TO GUN OWNERS: ‘AVOID CALIFORNIA!’

BELLEVUE, WA – For the first time in its history, the Second Amendment Foundation today issued a “travel advisory” to firearms owners to avoid going to California, warning law-abiding armed citizens that their civil rights could be in jeopardy due to that state’s restrictive gun control laws.

“The California Legislature has been out of control for years when it comes to placing restrictions on the Second Amendment rights of honest citizens,” SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb observed. “Right now, I wouldn’t suggest to any gun owner that they even travel through the state, much less to it as their final destination.

“Lawmakers in Sacramento,” he continued, “either ignored or have forgotten that in 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court incorporated the Second Amendment to the states via the 14th Amendment in SAF’s landmark case of McDonald v. City of Chicago. The Second Amendment’s protection of the right to keep and bear arms applies to state and local governments, but they seem rather oblivious to that fact in the halls of California’s Legislature.”

Of particular concern to Gottlieb is the fact that California steadfastly refuses to recognize concealed carry licenses or permits from other states. The state’s restrictive laws literally leave residents and visitors defenseless.

“If you are licensed to carry in your home state,” he warned, “that license is not recognized in California. It doesn’t matter how many background checks you’ve gone through or whether you took a gun safety course. Your license is no good in the Golden State, which suggests that your safety and the safety of your family are of no concern to state lawmakers or city administrators. You could be prosecuted for having a gun for personal protection, or you might get killed because you didn’t.

“By not going to California,” Gottlieb said, “the life you save may be your own.”