Leonard Fyock v. City of Sunnyvale
2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 3471
| 9th Cir. | 2015Background
- Sunnyvale enacted Measure C (Sunnyvale Muni. Code §§ 9.44.030–060) banning possession within city limits of detachable magazines that accept more than 10 rounds, with limited exceptions and a 90-day compliance period.
- Plaintiffs (Fyock and co-plaintiffs), Sunnyvale residents who own large-capacity magazines, sued and sought a preliminary injunction to block enforcement pending merits; district court denied the injunction.
- Plaintiffs appealed interlocutorily under 18 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(1), arguing the ordinance violates the Second Amendment and will cause irreparable harm.
- The Ninth Circuit reviews denial of a preliminary injunction for abuse of discretion and applies a two-step Second Amendment framework (burden then scrutiny level), requiring likelihood of success on the merits as the key preliminary-injunction element at issue.
- The district court found Measure C likely burdens conduct within the Second Amendment but applied intermediate scrutiny and concluded the city submitted sufficient evidence showing a reasonable fit to substantial public-safety interests; the Ninth Circuit affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Measure C burdens conduct protected by the Second Amendment | Fyock: possession of magazines >10 rounds is protected as necessary to use commonly owned firearms for self-defense | Sunnyvale: large-capacity magazines are regulable; may be "dangerous and unusual" or historically regulated | Court: ordinance likely burdens Second Amendment conduct but record didn’t compel finding magazines are historically unprotected or "unusual"; district court did not err in its finding |
| Appropriate level of scrutiny | Fyock: ban implicates core right and imposes severe burden (urging strict scrutiny implicitly) | Sunnyvale: regulation does not substantially burden core self-defense right and intermediate scrutiny is appropriate | Court: intermediate scrutiny appropriate because burden on core right is not severe; district court correct |
| Whether Measure C survives intermediate scrutiny | Fyock: evidence shows defensive uses and common ownership; regulation not reasonably fit | Sunnyvale: public-safety interest substantial; evidence links large-capacity magazines to greater harm and mass-shooting lethality | Court: Sunnyvale submitted permissible evidence showing a reasonable fit; district court’s weighing of evidence not an abuse of discretion; Measure C likely survives intermediate scrutiny |
| Whether preliminary injunction should issue | Fyock: likely to succeed on merits and would suffer irreparable harm absent injunction | Sunnyvale: plaintiffs unlikely to prevail; public interest favors denial | Court: because Fyock failed to show likelihood of success, district court did not abuse discretion in denying preliminary injunction; affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008) (Second Amendment protects individual right to possess firearms for self-defense in the home)
- McDonald v. City of Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010) (Second Amendment incorporated against the states)
- United States v. Chovan, 735 F.3d 1127 (9th Cir. 2013) (two-step test: whether conduct is protected then appropriate level of scrutiny)
- Jackson v. City & County of San Francisco, 746 F.3d 953 (9th Cir. 2014) (intermediate scrutiny for certain firearm regulations; courts may consider availability of alternatives for self-defense)
- United States v. Henry, 688 F.3d 637 (9th Cir. 2012) (machine guns as "dangerous and unusual" weapons outside Second Amendment)
- Heller v. District of Columbia (Heller II), 670 F.3d 1244 (D.C. Cir. 2011) (upholding large-capacity-magazine prohibition under intermediate scrutiny)