Second Amendment activists to County Board of Supervisors: Dealing with an unconstitutional law should be near the top of your priority list

Guest Commentary
by Michael A. Schwartz

As I wrote a few weeks ago, recent court decisions have made it clear that San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore’s restrictive policies regarding issuance of concealed weapons permits are unconstitutional, infringing on the rights of county citizens.

Despite the Ninth Circuit Court’s November 12 decision to not take up an appeal in Peruta vs. Sheriff Bill Gore, in a recent U-T San Diego article, the Sheriff stated he will continue to delay issuing permits — and that when he finally stops delaying, it could take up to two years to work through his department’s current backlog of applications.

Due to concerns that Sheriff Gore still isn’t taking their rights seriously, three other volunteer activists for Gun Owners of California (GOC) joined me today to speak in front of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, communicating our concerns.

As GOC San Diego Regional Coordinator, I reminded the Supervisors that although Gore is in charge of his office, they are the ones controlling his funding. All money for any further lawsuits will originate from the County Board’s budget. Having to sue over Sheriff Gore’s policies, “based on his personal biases,” I said, “will already cost San Diego taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal reimbursements.” I further asked the Board members to “please consult with our Sheriff so that his decisions do not cost our county even more.”

I also suggested that Sheriff Gore could use the volunteers with the San Diego Honorary Sheriff’s Association (SDHSA) to help process the backlog of applications that he created, thus resulting in his policies to be found unconstitutional. I pointed out that the members of the SDHSA, a fundraising group for the Sheriff’s Department, has an unusually high concentration of permit holders, with many familiar with the process.

I ended my comments with a quote from Ninth Circuit Judge Anthony Ishii, who — in another recent gun case in which California was attempting to stall implementation of the court’s decision — wrote,  “The Court does not know how the Defendant prioritizes projects, but dealing with an unconstitutional law should be towards the top of the list.”

Capt. Mike Taylor, United States Navy, also provided a statement to the Board of Supervisors, as a GOC member. Taylor is also the co-owner and founder of San Diego Gun Buyer, a fully licensed firearms dealer in San Diego. He told the Board about his experience trying to obtain his carry permit even though he qualifies under Sheriff’s Gore’s policies in place prior to the court ruling.

“They (Sheriff’s Department) routinely violate California personnel laws which state their agency only needs enough personal information to do their stated job and not beyond.” Captain Taylor went on to say that the Sheriff’s Department required him to provide, among other items, a year of bank statements, a letter from himself — as his own commanding officer — giving himself permission to apply for a carry permit, and a detailed Chain of Command from his current position in the Navy up to President Obama.

Taylor complied with every request in a timely manner and started his quest for a permit last March. “These requirements are not only a break of California privacy laws,” he said, “they have nothing to do with a CCW application and are a clear example of a Sheriff’s Department that is extremely adept at abusing its authority and not following their own application guidelines.”

GOC member and certified pistol instructor Rob Morse stated to the Supervisors that Gore’s policies invited a lawsuit and that the Sheriff “deserved to be sued.” Morse went on to tell about some of his San Diego students and neighbors, including one who piloted the plane of a U.S. president and another who stood guard over nuclear submarines, yet were denied by Gore of “the right to protect themselves as they walk down their driveway.”

“That is deplorable,” said Morse. “Self-defense matters because in San Diego, 150 of my neighbors are victims of violent crime every day … More lawsuits are coming until our Sheriff allows our neighbors the choice of self-defense.  Please make that day sooner rather than later.”

Republican Central Committee member Eric Andersen, another GOC member, told the Supervisors of a conversation he had with Gore before this year’s election. “I received a personal call from Sheriff Gore. We had a very pleasant conversation,” Andersen noted. “I expressed my concern that his definition of ‘good cause’ was placing an undue burden on San Diego County residents that infringed on their natural right to bear arms. I was assured privately what he has shared publicly — that he would uphold and enforce the decision by the court.”

As our statements took place during the Board’s public comments and was not an issue on the agenda, there was no comment by any of the Supervisors and there was no action they could take today. The statements made by Captain Taylor, Morse, Andersen, as well as mine, were to bring an issue to the attention of the government body that makes budget decisions for the Sheriff’s Department — the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

Unfortunately, there is no similar open forum to attend to let Sheriff Gore know how you feel, but you can email his public affairs officer, Ken Culver at: ken.culver@sdsheriff.org