Well, it’s very unusual for a state attorney general’s office to release the private information of hundreds of thousands of lawful gun owners, right?
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened in California this week as Attorney General Rob Bont, a Democrat who heads the agency and is running for reelection in November, introduced a “firearms data portal” that gave users the opportunity to download the private and sensitive information of every person in the state with a Concealed Handgun Permit — including names, addresses, and race.
The Second Amendment activists see it as a major breach of privacy.
On Wednesday according to Sam Paredes, executive director of Gun Owners of California, the disclosure of information was either careless or potentially illegal.
Here’s what Paredes said:
“We believe that AG Rob Bonta is either massively incompetent, incredibly negligent, or willing to criminally leak information that he does not have the authority to leak,” Paredes said.
“This is so egregious that he should resign. He has placed tens of thousands of abiding citizens in California in harms way. That is not excusable with an ‘I’m sorry.'”
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office claimed on Facebook that Bonta’s office “plans to contact CCW holders directly to advise them of the breach and will institute a program to reduce any harm or damages to CCW holders that resulted from the breach,” but Chuck Michel, president of the California Rifle & Pistol Association questions what the AG can do specifically to “reduce harm” now that the private information, including addresses, of concealed carry holders, has been downloaded and published online.
Here’s what Michel asked:
“The problem is what are they going to do. There are potential legislative remedies, there are notifications and things that the Attorney General can try to do, but none of it is going to unring this bell. So what are they going to do; put up security for celebrities and judges and prosecutors so they can [feel safe]? And even if you go to court, the problem is that courts can’t go out and get this stuff off the internet.”
“So we’re looking into, because they need to be taught a lesson, potential causes of action against the Attorney General for this violation of the right to privacy. The problem is that there are some immunity issues; the statute in question applies more to sheriffs than to the Attorney General’s office itself. I’ve got three lawyers sitting in the office up half the night working up the analysis of what potential legal violations took place, what kind of lawsuit could be filed. Is it a class action, could there be sub-classes like judges or prosectors or individuals?” he added.
The California Rifle and Pistol Association noted that the release came days after the U.S. Supreme Court’s consequential Second Amendment ruling.
The Dailywire reported that the Reload reported a database for Los Angeles County that showed the personal information of 244 judge permits, seven custodial officers, 63 people with a place of employment permit, and 420 reserved officers.
The private information has since been taken down but raises major concern as the midterm elections approach.
Californian lawmakers should strip the AG of the power to gather and store all of this data, in response to this unethical disclosure of personal information.
Things like this are one reason why gun owners have legitimate concerns about the government creating gun owner registries; these organizations can’t be trusted to keep this information safe and secure, especially when the people in charge are so hostile to those of us who exercise our right to keep and bear arms.
Watch it here: Youtube/Bearing Arms’ Cam & Co
Sources: Dailywire, Thederrick, Latimes