ROGER BENITEZ MOVIE

“You took the language from the gun lobby to write this opinion.”Īsked for his reaction on Guttenberg’s remarks, Benitez told CNN in an email he is “prohibited from publicly commenting on pending cases.”Īlso on Saturday, Richard Martinez, whose son was killed in a 2014 California mass shooting, spoke to CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield and rejected the judge’s conclusion that assault weapons like the AR-15 are “fairly ordinary, popular, modern rifles.” “You are a liar, and your opinion is written utilizing the exact language of the gun lobby. Guttenberg also called Benitez a “liar” and an “activist judge.” “If a Swiss Army Knife were used, my daughter and most of those other kids and adults would be alive today.” “My daughter is in a cemetery because a Swiss Army Knife was not used, because it was an AR-15,” he said. The President continues to press for commonsense laws to reduce gun violence - including a ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines.”įred Guttenberg, a gun safety activist whose daughter was killed in the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in 2018, denounced the judge’s comparison. “There is no sound basis in law, fact, or common sense for equating assault rifles with swiss army knives – especially on Gun Violence Awareness Day and after the recent shootings in our own California communities,” his statement said.Ī White House spokesperson said in a statement, “Courts have again and again held that an assault weapons ban does not violate the Second Amendment, which is limited. “Today’s decision is fundamentally flawed, and we will be appealing it,” Bonta said in a news release. The ruling and injunction are stayed for 30 days, during which time the attorney general may appeal and seek a stay from the Court of Appeals.Ĭalifornia Attorney General Rob Bonta said he will be appealing the ruling.

Newsom added: “We’re not backing down from this fight, and we’ll continue pushing for common sense gun laws that will save lives.” The comparison, he said in a statement, “completely undermines the credibility of this decision and is a slap in the face to the families who’ve lost loved ones to this weapon.” Gavin Newsom, who called the AR-15 a “weapon of war.” The comparison of the AR-15 to a versatile pocket knife favored by campers drew sharp criticism from California officials including Gov. He also struck down the state’s restriction on remote purchases of gun ammunition.Ĭalifornia officials pledge to appeal ruling Last year, he ruled California’s ban on high-capacity magazines was unconstitutional. Judge Benitez has previously ruled against other state firearm restrictions.

ROGER BENITEZ MOVIE

Still, an AR-15 style rifle has been the weapon of choice for the most violent mass killings in modern history, including in a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh the Route 91 Harvest musical festival in Las Vegas a massacre at a church in Texas the Pulse nightclub in Orlando a high school in Parkland, Florida and the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. Knives or cutting instruments accounted for 1,476 murders, rifles accounted for 364 murder victims, and “firearms, type not stated” accounted for 3,281 victims, the data shows. The facts, however, do not support this hyperbole, and facts matter.”Īccording to 2019 FBI data, the handgun was the most commonly used weapon in murders and accounted for 6,368 victims in 2019. In his ruling, the judge also criticized the news media, writing, “One is to be forgiven if one is persuaded by news media and others that the nation is awash with murderous AR-15 assault rifles. “Firearms deemed as ‘assault weapons’ are fairly ordinary, popular, modern rifles.” “Like the Swiss Army Knife, the popular AR-15 rifle is a perfect combination of home defense weapon and homeland defense equipment,” Benitez said in the ruling. Benitez issued a permanent injunction Friday so the law cannot be enforced. The law has been updated several times since it was originally passed.Īccording to the ruling by US District Judge Roger Benitez of San Diego, the assault weapons ban violates the Second Amendment’s right to bear arms and deprives Californians from owning assault-style weapons commonly allowed in other states.

A federal judge overturned California’s longtime ban on assault weapons on Friday in a ruling that likened the AR-15 to a Swiss Army knife.Īssault weapons have been banned in California since 1989, according to the ruling.

Roger benitez