The Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel, in an opinion released Friday, said a federal ban on selling handguns to adults under 21 is unconstitutional.
As such, the DOJ will not be enforcing the ban, as “18 to 20-year-olds are among ‘the people’ protected by the Second Amendment,” the agency said.
“Eighteen-year-olds may vote, serve on juries, be drafted, and face adult criminal penalties, including capital punishment,” Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser said in a statement. “The Constitution protects the people’s right to keep and bear arms. The Department of Justice may not constitutionally seek to impose criminal penalties on dealers who sell handguns to law-abiding adults who, in nearly every other relevant respect, are members of the political community.”
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The Supreme Court has not ruled on the issue. Federal appellate courts have been divided, with some upholding the constitutionality of the age restrictions and others ruling that it violates the Second Amendment.
Gun violence prevention organizations were quick to condemn the DOJ’s opinion.
GIFFORDS called the Trump administration’s refusal to enforce the ban a move meant to “please the gun lobby.”
“The Department of Justice’s job is to defend the law, not ignore it. This is yet another illegal and dangerous action by the Trump administration to please their gun lobby CEO donors. This corruption will result in people losing their lives,” GIFFORDS Executive Director Emma Brown said in a statement. “People ages 18 to 20 are responsible for a disproportionate share of school shootings, public mass shootings, and gun homicides overall. There is a reason minimum age laws exist. We will do everything we can to fight this.”
Kris Brown, president of Brady: United Against Gun Violence, said the DOJ opinion “undermines a longstanding tradition of regulations that restrict firearms to individuals who pose a heightened risk of violence.”
“The provision prohibiting the sale of handguns to 18-to-20-year-olds has protected public safety for generations,” Kris Brown said. “While the DOJ legal opinion does not change the law itself, it merely reflects the erroneous views of the Trump administration. The decision not to enforce the law will make it easier for young adults — a community at higher risk for gun violence — to obtain firearms.”
The Firearms Policy Coalition, which has challenged the prohibition on selling guns to 18- to 20-year-olds in the courts, agreed that the federal government can’t justify denying them “access to handguns based solely on age,” according to Axios, though the group stopped short of saying licensed dealers can start selling to them.
“[The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives] currently published dealer guidance still reflects the age restriction, so we are reviewing how ATF implements the opinion before giving broader guidance,” the FPC said.
