District Judge Roger T. Benitez sits on the United States District Court for the Southern District of California - the 9th Circuit. He's probably best known for his opinions against several California gun control laws, though detractors have also decried some of his other actions. He's an isolated voice of reason in a babbling crowd of partisan dogma.
[Note: cover photo United States District Court for the Southern District of California, public domain.]
Judges aren't supposed to create their own de facto laws or support those that are unconstitutional. Unfortunately, there is a lot of both in the 9th Circuit.
And that's why you should know his name.
"The overwhelming majority of citizens who own and keep the popular AR-15 rifle and its many variants do so for lawful purposes, including self-defense at home," Judge Benitez said. "More people have died from the Covid-19 vaccine than mass shootings in California."
You can imagine how a statement like that resonated in Southern California.
Judge Roger Benitez: Why We Support Him
"Judge Benitez...he seems like an honest, fair person that is unaffected by the opinions of the left or the right. From what I can tell from the news and the web, he is laser-focused on the law and what our constitution mandates. The Bill of Rights is not given to us by man; they are endowed by our creator. God-given.
Let that sink in. No one should be able to take these rights away or chip away at their effectiveness. No one.
Your attention to this man and his decisions is warranted. He's applying the law in a jurisdiction that is lawless at times. And not just lawless, but that changes based on popular whims.
Judge Benitez is a brave soul who will be attacked because of his conviction in the law and his view that his job is to interpret the law as written. Judge Benitez does not legislate from the bench.
We need more judges like this." - GW Ayers, Rainier Arms CSO
Interestingly, Judge Benitez was born in Havana, Cuba. He became a Juris Doctor in 1978 and was a judge on the California Superior Court from 1997 to 2001. In 2001 Judge Roger Benitez was appointed by President George W. Bush to the Southern District of California (San Diego) and subsequently confirmed by the US Senate by a 98-1 vote.
Although the American Bar Association opposed his nomination, it was supported by Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer.
In 2019 Judge Benitez caught the attention of pro-2A people across the country when he granted summary judgment in the Duncan v. Becerra/Duncan v. Bonta lawsuit. That was the case that successfully challenged California's ban on "high capacity" magazines. He later came to the defense of the AR-15.
That ruling was reversed by the Ninth Circuit in 2021, but in 2022 the US Supreme Court vacated the reversal decision and sent it back for reconsideration after the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen ruling.
It's hardly surprising Benitez has become the focus of vilification from the left and celebration on the right - including many memes that humorously canonize him.
"Like the Swiss Army Knife, the popular AR-15 rifle is a perfect combination of home defense weapon and homeland defense equipment. Good for both home and battle, the AR-15 is the kind of versatile gun that lies at the intersection of the kinds of firearms protected under District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008) and United States v. Miller, 307 U.S. 174 (1939)." Judge Roger Benitez
Hopefully, the work of Judge Benitez is more than a delaying action.
“[t]he right to sue and defend in the courts is the alternative of force. In an organized society it is the right conservative of all other rights, and lies at the foundation of orderly government. It is one of the highest and most essential privileges of citizenship…. Equality of treatment in this respect is not left to depend upon comity between the states, but is granted and protected by the Federal Constitution."
— Judge Roger Benitez in his order enjoining California’s gun control challenge fee-shifting law
