The judges found that the state's policy of limiting open carry to counties with a population of less than 200,000 is inconsistent with the Second Amendment. California's legal regime is a complete ban on open carry in urban areas the areas of the state where 95% of the people live, they said in the decision. The dissenting judge disagreed and said California could limit open carry in more populated areas because it allows for concealed carry throughout the state.
California's ban on the open carry of firearms in most parts of the state is unconstitutional, a San Francisco-based federal appeals court ruled Friday. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals determined that the ban, which applied to counties with populations greater than 200,000, violates residents' 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Under those regulations, 95% of the state's population was subject to the ban.
The ruling comes in the wake of a series of Trump authorizations to deploy National Guard troops to American cities including Los Angeles, Washington D.C., and Chicago. President Trump has said the deployments are necessary to protect the work of ICE agents, and reduce crime. On Oct. 16, a federal appeals court upheld an earlier district court ruling in Illinois, temporarily blocking the president's federalization and deployment of the National Guard deployment there. The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to intervene.
Circuit Judge Gabriel Sanchez said the strength of the Trader Joe's name, the chain's own sale of tote bags, and the "strikingly similar" marks featuring the same red color, similar fonts and concentric circles could confuse consumers. "This is not one of the rare trademark infringement cases in which there is no plausible likelihood that a reasonably prudent consumer would be confused," Sanchez wrote.