You can fight in a war and die of your country, but you can’t buy a handgun?
A federal judge in Virginia declared unconstitutional laws and regulations prohibiting adults under the age of 21 from purchasing handguns.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert Payne rendered a 71-page decision, says the federal regulation banning handgun sales to 18- to 20-year-olds violates the principles enshrined in the Constitution, since 18- to 20-year-olds can join the military, vote, and serve on federal juries, and there’s no reason a federal law should restrict them from buying a gun.
In his written opinion, Payne said, “If the Court were to exclude 18- to-20-year-olds from the Second Amendment’s protection, it would impose restrictions on the Second Amendment that are not imposed on other constitutional guarantees. Therefore, due to their inconsistency with our nation’s historical context and traditions, the statutes and regulations in question cannot be upheld.”
Payne added, “Because the statutes and regulations in question are not consistent with our Nation’s history and tradition, they, therefore, cannot stand.”
The ruling came in a class action lawsuit was brought by 20-year-old college student John Corey Fraser and other plaintiffs, who in their filing in June of 2022 said the Gun Control Act of 1968 and certain regulations from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were unconstitutional because they excluded all adults under 21 from exercising the right to keep and bear arms.
Adults under 21 are allowed by ATF to purchase long guns, which include shotguns and rifles, from federally licensed dealers, but they have been banned from purchasing handguns.
“This blanket ban violates the fundamental rights of millions of responsible, law-abiding American citizens,” the gun class action stated.
Fraser, who lives in Virginia, had attempted to purchase a Glock 19x handgun from a licensed dealer in Ashland, Va., but was turned away in 2022, prompting the lawsuit.
