Following yesterday’s decision by Judge Robert Raschio in Harney County to prevent enforcement of Ballot Measure 114, the Oregon Department of Justice today filed a mandamus petition asking the Oregon Supreme Court to review the decision immediately. The gun safety law, approved by the voters last month by way of the initiative petition process, was originally set to go into effect tomorrow (Thursday), but the ruling in Harney County currently puts a stop to that.
There are several cases pending that have challenged the new law. In contrast to the Harney County state court ruling, in a separate case, US District Court Judge Karin Immergut yesterday denied a request by the Oregon Firearms Federation and other plaintiffs to temporarily prevent implementation of the large-capacity magazine restrictions of Measure 114. If not for Judge Raschio’s ruling, those restrictions would have gone into effect tomorrow, along with the fix for the “Charleston loophole”– a federal loophole that allows gun transfers to proceed if background checks cannot be completed quickly.
Statement from Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum:
“We strongly disagree with the decision of the Harney County Circuit Court. Our mandamus petition to the Oregon Supreme Court gives our highest state court the opportunity to weigh in now and reverse the Harney County judge’s ruling. Magazine capacity restrictions and permitting requirements have a proven track record: they save lives! We are confident the Oregon Constitution—like the Second Amendment of the U.S. constitution—allows these reasonable regulations.”
Read the filing: https://www.doj.state.or.us/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/ARNOLD-MEMORANDUM-OF-LAW-22CV41008-joseph-et-al.pdf