The panel reversed the district courts summary judgment
and held that a responsible, law-abiding citizen has a right
under the Second Amendment to carry a firearm in public for
self-defense.
Plaintiffs challenged a County of San Diego policy which
interpreted Californias restriction on carrying handguns in
public. California generally prohibits the open or concealed
carriage of a handgun, whether loaded or unloaded, in public
locations, absent the showing of, among other things, good
cause. Under San Diegos policy, concern for ones personal
safety alone is not considered good cause.
The panel first held that a law-abiding citizens ability to
carry a gun outside the home for self-defense fell within the
Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for the
purpose of self-defense. Applying the analysis set forth in
District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008), the panel
then held that it did not need to apply a particular standard of
heightened scrutiny to the San Diego policy because the
good cause restriction amounted to a destruction of the
Second Amendment right altogether. The panel concluded
that San Diego Countys good cause permitting
requirement impermissibly infringed on the Second
Amendment right to bear arms in lawful self-defense.