Background
In early 2022, California legislators introduced Assembly Bill 2571, a measure purportedly designed to ban the “marketing” of firearms to minors. While framed as a public safety tool, the legislation was written so broadly that it threatened to criminalize legitimate youth education and safety training. Despite warnings from the Sportsmen’s Alliance, Governor Newsom signed the bill into law in June 2022.
Immediately recognizing the existential threat this posed to our heritage, the Sportsmen’s Alliance, alongside Safari Club International, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, and SoCal Top Guns, sued the state of California. Our coalition argued that the law violated the First, Second, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments by censoring truthful speech about lawful activities.
Impact to Hunters
The immediate impact of AB 2571 was devastating. Because the law imposed crippling fines of up to $25,000 per occurrence, youth shooting sports teams were forced to shut down, and organizations had to scrub websites of any content featuring minors with firearms.
The Sportsmen’s Alliance was forced to censor its own member magazine distributed in California, removing photos of youth hunters and articles about our educational programs. By effectively banning the promotion of hunter safety courses and youth camps, the state’s true intent was clear: to dismantle the future of hunting by severing the pipeline of new recruits and preventing the transmission of traditions to the next generation.
Where We Stand Now
Although a district court initially denied our request to stop the law, we refused to give up. The coalition filed an appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that the state cannot ban non-misleading speech simply because it dislikes the content.
In a resounding victory for sportsmen, a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit agreed, ruling that the law violated the First Amendment. On April 12, 2024, U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd signed an order officially blocking the enforcement of AB 2571. The state attempted to request a rehearing before the full court, but in a telling move, not a single one of the 29 active judges voted to hear it. Today, the law remains blocked, ensuring that youth safety programs and our hunting heritage can continue to thrive in California.
Help Us Fight for You
Your tax-deductible donation to the Sportsmen’s Legal Defense Fund directly supports our legal fights in courtrooms nationwide. The Sportsmen’s Legal Defense Fund was established to represent sportsmen in lawsuits that affect your ability to hunt, fish, trap and own firearms. Its funding ensures the sportsman’s voice is heard above the rhetoric of anti-hunting groups.
Join the fight for your hunting and fishing future by donating to the Sportsmen’s Legal Defense Fund today!
