LA gun owners stuck waiting years for concealed carry permits score major DOJ victory
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) has slashed lengthy concealed carry permit delays after a Department of Justice (DOJ) lawsuit accused the agency of leaving thousands of applications in limbo and forcing some gun owners to wait nearly three years for action.
The turnaround prompted the DOJ to end its landmark lawsuit against LASD, with federal officials announcing Thursday that the sheriff’s department is now meeting California's permitting deadlines after adding personnel and new processing software.
The case put one of the nation's largest law enforcement agencies at the center of the Trump administration's push to enforce Second Amendment rights, with the DOJ calling the outcome a "huge win" for Los Angeles County residents and gun owners.
The agreement marks the conclusion of a case the DOJ touted when it was filed in September 2025 as its first-ever affirmative lawsuit brought in support of gun owners' Second Amendment rights.
At the time of the lawsuit, applicants were waiting an average of more than nine months to receive decisions on their permits, the DOJ alleged. LASD has since "drastically" reduced those waits and is now complying with California's statutory deadlines, the DOJ said.
"The sheriff acknowledged the problem and devoted substantial additional resources, including new processing software and additional personnel, to cutting waiting times dramatically," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division said.
"We applaud their efforts and are happy to be able to bring this litigation to a successful conclusion!"
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The settlement caps a battle that began in March 2025, when the DOJ's Civil Rights Division opened a pattern-or-practice investigation into whether the nation's largest sheriff's department was effectively denying residents their constitutional right to bear arms through excessive permitting delays.
The DOJ said at the time that it had received numerous complaints about the department's handling of concealed carry applications. Federal officials pointed to a court case in which applicants had faced waits of roughly 18 months.
The investigation escalated into a federal lawsuit on Sept. 30, 2025.
Federal prosecutors alleged that between January 2024 and March 2025, LASD received 3,982 applications for new concealed carry licenses but had approved just two as of May 2025.
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Approximately 2,768 applications remained pending, while another 1,210 had been withdrawn, according to the complaint.
The federal government alleged applicants waited an average of 281 days before LASD took action on its applications, while the median delay was 372 days. Some applicants had waited as long as 1,030 days — nearly three years.
California law requires licensing authorities to provide applicants with an initial approval or denial within 90 days.
The DOJ argued those delays amounted to a "pattern or practice" of depriving people of their constitutional rights, alleging LASD was effectively forcing some applicants to abandon their efforts to obtain a permit.
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"The Second Amendment protects the fundamental constitutional right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms," former Attorney General Pam Bondi said when the lawsuit was filed. "Los Angeles County may not like that right, but the Constitution does not allow them to infringe upon it."
The federal action followed separate litigation brought by the California Rifle & Pistol Association, Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners of California, the Second Amendment Foundation and individual gun owners challenging California and local concealed carry restrictions.
That case resulted in a preliminary injunction that included allowing qualifying non-California residents to apply for concealed carry permits. California subsequently changed its law to permit qualifying non-residents to apply, and LASD's current application portal includes an option for out-of-state applicants.
The DOJ's case also came amid a broader effort by the Trump administration to use federal civil rights enforcement to protect Second Amendment rights.
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The Civil Rights Division has since established a dedicated Second Amendment Section, which has pursued challenges involving firearms laws and permitting practices in several jurisdictions.
Under the settlement announced Thursday, LASD will maintain procedures designed to ensure concealed carry applications are processed under objective standards and without lengthy delays.
The DOJ credited Sheriff Robert Luna's department with putting additional personnel and new technology toward eliminating the backlog.
The DOJ said its Second Amendment Section will continue accepting complaints from current and prospective gun owners who believe state or local governments have infringed their right to keep or bear arms.
Fox News Digital reached out to the LASD for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
Fox News Digital's Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.