DOJ Declares it Will No Longer Enforce Two Gun-Control Statutes That Are ‘Inconsistent with the Second Amendment’
President Donald Trump’s Justice Department announced it will no longer enforce two federal laws from 1968 that restrict handgun sales and ammunition to individuals under 21. This decision aligns with recent Supreme Court rulings interpreting the Second Amendment, which protect an individual’s right to bear arms. Specifically,the DOJ concluded that these laws are unconstitutional because they infringe on the rights of adults aged 18 to 20,who are already responsible for voting,serving in the military,and facing adult penalties. Conservatives praised this move as a significant victory for gun rights, asserting that those mature enough to vote and serve in the military should also have the right to purchase handguns.Though,liberals and gun control advocates criticized the decision,citing concerns about youth violence and mass shootings associated with this age group. The announcement reflects ongoing legal and ideological debates over gun ownership rights and age restrictions, influenced by recent Supreme Court decisions favoring expanded gun rights.
President Donald Trump’s Justice Department just opened fire on two federal laws that have infringed on gun rights for almost 60 years.
In a news release Friday, the DOJ announced it would not enforce two statutes in federal law that prohibit federally licensed gun dealers from selling handguns or handgun ammunition to those under the age of 21.
In light of Supreme Court rulings on gun rights in recent years, the DOJ declared, the laws are “inconsistent with the Second Amendment.”
New DOJ Opinion Says Young Adults Have Second Amendment Right to Buy Handgunshttps://t.co/LOJOTrUGwv
— Bearing Arms (@BearingArmsCom) September 18, 2026
Specifically, the DOJ cited two statutes passed in the 1968 Gun Control Act that prohibited sales of guns “other than a shotgun or rifle, or ammunition for a shotgun or rifle” to those under 21 or required purchasers in some cases to attest in writing that they were 21 or older.
Those measures passed in the context of a violent decade that witnessed exploding crime as well as high-profile assassinations, as History.com noted.
But the Trump Justice Department has found they are not in compliance with what the Constitution protects for Americans. In sum, the DOJ stated, those who reach the age of legal majority are the “people” the Framers had in mind in writing the Second Amendment, which guarantees that “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
“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 the DOJ news release.
“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.”
Conservatives praised the announcement.
“The Constitution does not create second-class adults,” conservative commentator Gunther Eagleman wrote in a post on the social media platform X.
HUGE SECOND AMENDMENT WIN!
The Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel just ruled that the federal ban on licensed dealers selling handguns to law-abiding adults ages 18 to 20 is unconstitutional and cannot be criminally enforced.
Not a suggestion.
Not a press… pic.twitter.com/Hn8S1VKlqa— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) September 18, 2026
“Massive 2A victory!” trumpeted prolific conservative X commentator Ryan Fournier.
MASSIVE 2A VICTORY! Trump’s DOJ just declared the federal ban on handgun sales to 18-20 year olds UNCONSTITUTIONAL.
If you’re old enough to vote and serve in our military, you’re old enough to defend yourself! The Second Amendment is ABSOLUTE. Big win for liberty! …— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) September 18, 2026
The DOJ’s announcement came only a day after CBS News cited unnamed sources to report that Trump had ordered the department not to appeal a Texas court ruling in August that went against the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and its efforts to enforce laws against short-barreled rifles and shotguns and firearms suppressors.
It also comes as Supreme Court decisions on Second Amendment cases have increasingly favored gun rights supporters and infuriated liberals.
The DOJ news release made it clear that the context was important, citing three major Supreme Court decisions in explaining its conclusion: Heller in 2008, which found the Second Amendment guaranteed the right to possess weapons not connected to military service; Bruen in 2022, which covered carrying weapons outside the home; and Wolford v. Lopez, which struck down a Hawaiian law restricting weapons carried on private property that is open to the public.
“The Office of Legal Counsel’s new opinion explains that federal statutes 18 U.S.C. § 922(b)(1) and (c)(1) are inconsistent with the Second Amendment as interpreted by the Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller, New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen, and subsequent decisions including Wolford v. Lopez,” the release said.
Friday’s DOJ announcement infuriated liberals even more.
“People ages 18 to 20 are responsible for a disproportionate of school shootings, public mass shootings, and gun homicides overall,” Emma Brown, executive director of the gun control group GIFFORDS (led by former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords), told CBS News.
“There is a reason minimum age laws exist. We will do everything we can to fight this.”
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