The Wire · CalGunHub

Ninth Circuit panel strikes down California's urban open-carry ban

Published January 2, 2026 · Updated October 12, 2026

A divided panel held the open-carry prohibition in counties of 200,000 or more violates the Second Amendment; the ruling was later vacated.

Written by the CalGunHub desk from public reporting

Who this affects: The January 2, 2026 panel decision did not change what California law requires on the ground. Because the Ninth Circuit took the case en banc on April 15, 2026 and vacated the panel opinion, the ruling never took effect. California's prohibition on open carry in counties of 200,000 or more residents remains in force and enforceable, as the state Department of Justice advised law-enforcement agencies in bulletins dated January 7 and April 16, 2026. The en banc decision, still pending as of October 12, 2026, will determine what happens next. This is general information, not legal advice.

A divided Ninth Circuit panel on January 2, 2026 held that California's prohibition on openly carrying firearms in counties of 200,000 or more residents violates the Second Amendment, reversing summary judgment for the state in Baird v. Bonta, No. 24-565 (163 F.4th 723).

Judge Lawrence VanDyke authored the 2-1 opinion, with Judge Kenneth Lee concurring and Judge N. Randy Smith concurring in part and dissenting in part. The case, an appeal from the Eastern District of California, was brought by plaintiff Mark Baird, who challenged the open-carry restrictions as applied to urban counties. It had returned to the panel after a remand for reconsideration under the Supreme Court's Bruen decision.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta criticized the ruling, saying in a January 16, 2026 statement that "Allowing the open carry of firearms in densely populated counties creates unnecessary anxiety, terrorizes children, and instills fear throughout our communities." His office filed a petition for rehearing en banc the same day. The California Department of Justice issued law-enforcement bulletins on January 7 and April 16, 2026 advising that the restrictions remained enforceable.

Update: The Ninth Circuit granted rehearing en banc on April 15, 2026, vacating the panel opinion. The panel ruling therefore never took effect, and California's open-carry restrictions remain in force. The en banc court heard argument in Seattle on June 3, 2026; as of October 12, 2026, no en banc decision had issued.

The majority concluded that the historical record did not support a tradition of banning open carry in populated areas of the kind California has enforced since the Legislature extended the prohibition to urban counties. Judge Smith's partial dissent would have upheld more of the regime. Because the state sought rehearing, the panel opinion's practical effect was paused almost immediately, and the California Department of Justice moved quickly to advise agencies that nothing had changed on the ground.

Informational only, not legal advice. Facts are attributed to the sources listed above.