On Thursday, April 9, 2026, AmmoLand reported that Judge Roger T. Benitez, often called “Saint” Benitez by Second Amendment advocates, retired from federal service as of April 2, 2026. Born in Cuba in December 1950, Benitez fled the Castro regime in 1960 and eventually settled in California.

Benitez’s career includes graduating from Central Union High School, earning an Associate’s degree from Imperial Valley Community College in 1971, a Bachelor of Arts degree from San Diego State University in 1974, and a J.D. degree from Western State University College of Law in 1978. After 19 years in private practice, he became a California Superior Court Judge from 1997 to 2001, followed by an appointment as a federal Magistrate judge in 2001. In 2004, he was elevated to Federal District Judge despite opposition. Benitez assumed senior status on December 31, 2017.

Judge Benitez was assigned a significant case before taking senior status, which took almost two years to resolve. He granted a motion for summary judgment against California, effective from March 29 to April 5, 2019, an event known as “Freedom Week.” This led to the legal purchase and shipment of hundreds of thousands of magazines into California.

The case was appealed to the Ninth Circuit, where a three-judge panel initially affirmed Benitez’s decision on August 14, 2020. However, the Ninth Circuit decided to rehear the case en banc, reversing the three-judge panel’s decision on June 22, 2021. The case then went to the Supreme Court, which vacated the Ninth Circuit en banc decision on June 30, 2022, and remanded it back to the Ninth Circuit, which then sent it back to Judge Benitez.

Benitez issued another decision on September 22, 2023, again finding the law unconstitutional, which was appealed to the Ninth Circuit. The Ninth Circuit bypassed a three-judge panel to rehear the case en banc, reversing Benitez’s decision in March 2025. As of his retirement, the Supreme Court had not decided whether to hear the case again.

In addition to Duncan v. Bonta, Benitez ruled California’s ban on AR-15s unconstitutional in 2021, a decision stayed by the Ninth Circuit pending the final decision in Duncan v. Bonta. He also found that requiring background checks to purchase ammunition was unconstitutional in 2024.

Judge Benitez is 75 years old and is recognized for his legacy of well-argued cases and decisions.

 

 

Source: AmmoLand