Case Summary

Residents of Boulder face heavy fines and jail time for the mere possession of firearms that are legal throughout Colorado and the United States. The city of Boulder imposed a sweeping ban of the most popular and widely-owned firearms and magazines in America. In a blatant act of discrimination against a political minority, the city council also unconstitutionally raised the minimum age for firearm possession in Boulder city limits to twenty-one.

Case History

Jon Caldara, a well-known pillar of the community; the Boulder Rifle Club, which has been in existence since 1889; Bison Tactical, a small business in Boulder city limits; Mark Ringer, a part-time law enforcement officer attending law school at the University of Colorado; and Tyler Faye, a member of the University of Colorado Shooting Team, all seek to defend their rights and the rights of their fellow Boulder residents against the illegal, unconstitutional, and discriminatory actions of the City of Boulder.

The city’s 2018 ordinance banned many rifles, shotguns, pistols, and standard-capacity magazines, as well as raising the minimum age for firearm possession within city limits. Existing owners of the banned weapons would be allowed to keep their firearms, but only if they agreed to register with the local police department. Residents could be subject to up to $1,000 in fines and 90 days in jail per violation.

Boulder resident Jon Caldara, who owns one or more of the guns banned under the ordinance, is a plaintiff in the lawsuit seeking to have the rule overturned.

“I have lived in Boulder since 1984,” Mr. Caldara said. “I believe we need to hold Boulder to its own standards in celebrating diversity and tolerance.”

“This is hate,” Mr. Caldara added, speaking of the city council’s view toward gun owners. “These are elitists who want people like me out of their town.”

From 2018 to 2022, Mountain States Legal Foundation represented Mr. Caldara and other Boulder residents fighting to overturn the unconstitutional ban.

While MSLF challenged the ordinance in federal court as violating the U.S. Constitution, others brought a parallel challenge in Colorado courts under state law. The federal courts held that the state court challenge had to be resolved first, despite MSLF’s objection that this was inappropriate when dealing with fundamental and constitutionally-protected rights. During 2020, MSLF petitioned the Supreme Court to resolve this issue of priority in the Caldara case.

Ultimately, there was a positive outcome for both the Caldara plaintiffs and those in the state court case.

In March 2021, a Colorado state district court struck down Boulder’s ban as contrary to state law, and in December 2021 the City of Boulder ceased its effort to appeal that decision. With the state court case permanently dismissed, Boulder’s ordinance was decisively defeated—the city could not attempt a new appeal on most of the 2018 measure. While the Caldara plaintiffs were not part of the state court case, its resolution was a victory for their rights, and those of all Boulder residents.

Satisfied with the result, Caldara and his co-plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed their separate federal lawsuit against Boulder in June 2022.

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