Important Judicial Decisions Regarding Self-Defense Law
The following legal decisions concern the law of self-defense. Some of the rulings are final and others are not. They’re presented here, along with salient excerpts, to be read for their excellent judicial logic about the absolute civil right of armed self-defense as established by the framers of the US Constitution.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, USA State Constitutions Providing for Armed Self-Defense ]
- US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruling: Baird v. Bonta (January 2, 2026) by US Circuit Judge Lawrence VanDyke (pdf).
- This ruling strikes down California’s open carry ban, finding it inconsistent with the Second Amendment and the nation’s tradition.
“For most of American history, open carry has been the default manner of lawful carry for firearms. It remains the norm across the country—more than 30 states generally allow open carry to this day, including states with significant urban populations. Indeed, several of our Nation’s largest cities and states recently returned to unlicensed open carry by explicitly authorizing it. For example, Texas reauthorized open carry without a license in 2021. Kansas likewise transitioned back to allowing open carry without a permit in 2015. And other states that placed restrictions on open carry in recent decades have also removed those burdens.”
“California’s ban on open carry in counties with a population greater than 200,000 (roughly 95% of the state’s population) is inconsistent with the Second Amendment’s right to bear arms as applied to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. Applying the standard set forth in Bruen, the historical record makes unmistakably plain that open carry is part of this Nation’s history and tradition. It was clearly protected at the time of the Founding and at the time of the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment….There is no record of any law restricting open carry at the Founding, let alone a distinctly similar historical regulation.” *
[ Read the SemperVerus article, The Heavy, Long Gun That Won the American Revolutionary War ]
- US District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruling: FPC v. Bondi (September 30, 2025) by US District Judge Reed O’Connor (pdf).
- This ruling strikes down the federal ban on carrying firearms in ordinary post offices and on postal property—declaring it violates the Second Amendment.
“[These laws] are inconsistent with the principles that underpin this Nation’s regulatory tradition. Thus, they are unconstitutional as-applied to carrying firearms inside an ordinary post office or on post office property.”
“[P]ossessing a firearm for self-defense within a post office or on post office property is an activity that falls within the plain text of the Second Amendment.”
“Post offices predate the founding of the United States. The first official mail service began in the American colonies in 1639….[E]ven though Congress and the Founders were aware of the ‘general societal problem’ of violence towards the postal service, the prohibition against firearms in post offices or on postal property did not appear until nearly 200 years after the founding….[I]t is hard to envision that the Founders would countenance banning firearms in the post office—particularly because they did not do so themselves.”
“An ordinary United States Post Office is defined as a United States Post Office that is not located inside of (1) a Military Base or similarly restricted access area, or (2) a Federally owned or leased building housing government functions other than a United States Post Office in which carrying a firearm would otherwise be prohibited.” *