Federal Appeals Court Rules Against Handgun Sales Ban for 18 to 20-Year-Olds

Federal Appeals Court Rules Against Handgun Sales Ban for 18 to 20-Year-Olds

A decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on the lawfulness of handgun ownership for 18 to 20-year-olds challenges federal handgun regulations.

Quick Takes

  • The 5th Circuit Court ruled a federal handgun sales ban for under-21s unconstitutional.
  • The decision suggests 18-20-year-olds should be granted the same gun ownership rights as older adults.
  • The ruling is influenced by a 2022 Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.
  • Federal age-based firearm purchase bans are called into question across the US.

Appeals Court Challenges Age-Based Restrictions

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans declared that a longstanding federal law barring individuals under 21 from purchasing handguns is unconstitutional. The court determined that young adults aged 18-20 have equal rights to firearm ownership under the Second Amendment. This decision aligns with a 2022 Supreme Court case that emphasized the need for firearm laws to be consistent with historical traditions. Similar age-based laws have been overturned in states like Minnesota, Virginia, and Texas.

Federal law, established by the 1968 Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act, currently allows licensed dealers to sell long guns to individuals 18 and older while restricting handgun sales to only those over 21. The 5th Circuit’s ruling questions the legitimacy of these age-based restrictions, citing a lack of historical precedent for such limitations.

While authorities defended the rule during the Biden administration, the Firearms Policy Coalition has celebrated this decision, touting it as a victory against age-based gun bans. The legal challenge initiated in 2020 argued that 18-20-year-olds were incorrectly excluded from Second Amendment protections.

Implications and Future Challenges

The ruling, authored by Judge Edith Jones, criticized the Justice Department for lacking substantial historical evidence to justify the current handgun purchase ban for those under 21. This new legal precedent threatens to undermine similar federal age restrictions on firearms sales, possibly setting grounds for further legal challenges across the nation.

“The federal government has presented scant evidence that eighteen-to-twenty-year-olds’ firearm rights during the founding-era were restricted in a similar manner to the contemporary federal handgun purchase ban, and its 19th-century evidence ‘cannot provide much insight into the meaning of the Second Amendment when it contradicts earlier evidence,’” the judges said.

The ruling has been sent to a lower court for further actions, paving the way for continued debate and legal scrutiny of age-related firearm restrictions. As the national conversation on gun rights persists, this case stands as a pivotal moment in the ongoing balance between public safety and constitutional freedoms.

Sources

  1. Federal court rules ban on handgun sales to adults under age 21 is unconstitutional
  2. Federal appeals court says ban on 18-year-olds buying handguns is unconstitutional
  3. US ban on gun sales to adults under age 21 is unconstitutional, court rules
  4. US ban on gun sales to adults under age 21 is unconstitutional, court rules