Appeals Court Strikes Down Longstanding Federal Gun Control Law

A federal appeals court has determined that a 1968 law prohibiting individuals aged 18 to 20 from owning handguns is unconstitutional.

On Thursday, the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals overturned a lower court’s decision that had previously upheld the ban, as outlined in the ruling.

The immediate national implications of this decision remain uncertain, but the case is highly likely to be reviewed by the Supreme Court, according to ABC.

The court’s reasoning heavily relied on the precedent established in the 2022 Supreme Court case New York State Rifle and Pistol Association vs. Bruen, which mandates that any gun control measures must align with the historical tradition of firearm regulation.

“Ultimately, the text of the Second Amendment includes eighteen-to-twenty-year-old individuals among ‘the people’ whose right to keep and bear arms is protected,” the court stated.

To justify restricting this age group from purchasing handguns, the government “must overcome this clear and germane evidence that eighteen-to-twenty-year-olds enjoyed the same Second Amendment rights as their twenty-one-year-old peers at the founding,” the ruling continued.

“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 appellate court pointed out that the Supreme Court has previously affirmed that “the Second Amendment ‘belongs to all Americans.’”

Addressing historical concerns over the maturity of individuals under 21, the ruling stated that these young adults “were expected to keep the peace rather than disturb it.”

In analyzing the Second Amendment, the court wrote that “while the core of the right is rooted in self-defense and unconnected with the militia, the text of the Amendment’s prefatory clause considered along with the overwhelming evidence of their militia service at the founding indicates that eighteen-to-twenty-year-olds were indeed part of ‘the people’ for Second Amendment purposes.”

The ruling reaffirmed that “ultimately, the text of the Second Amendment includes eighteen-to-twenty-year-old individuals among ‘the people’ whose right to keep and bear arms is protected.”

Brandon Combs, president of the Firearms Policy Coalition, one of the groups challenging the law, celebrated the decision.

“Today’s ruling is yet another critical FPC win against an immoral and unconstitutional age-based gun ban. We look forward to restoring the Second Amendment rights of all peaceable adults throughout the United States,” he stated, as reported by Newsweek.

However, Adam Winkler, a professor at UCLA School of Law, suggested the ruling might not lead to immediate changes for young adults seeking to purchase handguns, The New York Times reported.

He explained that the case will now return to the district court for further proceedings.

“I expect the law will remain in effect for at least a short while,” he said. “It could be a long while.”