DOJ targets Spanberger, Newsom gun laws with twin lawsuits after SCOTUS affirms Second Amendment rights

The Justice Department escalated its push against state gun restrictions Wednesday, filing lawsuits against California and Virginia just a week after the Supreme Court reaffirmed that the Second Amendment is not a "second-class right" in its decision in Wolford v.Lopez.The coordinated legal challenges target Democratic-backed firearm laws in both states, with the department seeking to block California's restrictions on the sale of new Glock-style semiautomatic pistols and Virginia's ban on the manufacture, sale, transfer and purchase of certain semiautomatic firearms classified as assault weapons.The California lawsuit was filed hours after the state's new handgun restrictions took effect, following Attorney General Rob Bonta's refusal to negotiate with the Justice Department over what federal officials contend are unconstitutional limits on gun rights.

Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon said the administration is taking alleged infringements of the Second Amendment seriously.COMER PROBES ALLEGED BIDEN COLLUSION WITH GUN CONTROL ACTIVISTS IN GLOCK LAWSUITThe redistricting failure is another headache for newly-elected Virginia Gov.Abigail Spanberger.

(Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg/Getty Images)"This lawsuit is yet another example of this Justice Department enforcing the Second Amendment by protecting citizens against unconstitutional state regulation of firearms," Dhillon said in a press release.Bonta revealed Tuesday that the Justice Department had sent California a notice of intent to sue, arguing the law violates the Second Amendment.In a response letter, Bonta rejected the Department's legal position and refused to negotiate."The Unsafe Handgun Act and Penal Code section 27595 are commonsense handgun design safety laws that help to prevent accidental discharges by experienced and non-experienced firearm users as well as the conversion of semiautomatic pistols into deadly automatic firing weapons," Bonta wrote."If the U.S.

Department of Justic...