Ninth Circuit Panel: California Cannot Ban Concealed Carry in Hospitals

On Friday, a three-judge panel from the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that California cannot ban concealed carry in hospitals.

The case, Wolford v. Lopez, centers on “sensitive places” bans on concealed carry which exist in Hawaii and California.

In a unanimous ruling, the three judges said bans could be “enforced in bars and restaurants that serve alcohol and in parks, and that California can enforce bans in casinos, libraries, zoos, stadiums and museums,” according to Reuters. However, the three judges also ruled against Hawaii’s ban on concealed carry in banks “or adjacent parking lots” and against California’s ban on concealed carry in hospitals, churches, and public transit.

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In weighing the case, the three-judge panel applied Rahimi (2024), Bruen (2022), and Heller (2008). In doing so, they observed that “our Nation has a clear historical tradition of banning firearms at sensitive places,” then differentiated between places that have existed since America’s founding and places that are newer.

In other words, places have long existed that are only recently considered to be sensitive. With this approach, the three-judge panel upheld some “sensitive places” bans while striking enforcement of others.

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Chuck Michel, director of the California Rifle & Pistol Association, cheered the ruling as a victory for gun rights.

The New York Times quoted Michel claiming the “sensitive places” bans were “never about safety” and actually placed the law-abiding concealed carry permit holder at a disadvantage.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio, a member of Gun Owners of America, a Pulsar Night Vision pro-staffer, and the director of global marketing for Lone Star Hunts. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal in 2010 and has a Ph.D. in Military History. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly: awrhawkins@breitbart.com.