In Major Victory for Gun Safety, Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Federal Restriction on Handgun Sales to Individuals Under 21; Everytown Law Responds

NEW YORK – Today, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit rejected a reckless gun lobby challenge to the life-saving federal law prohibiting individuals under the age of 21 from purchasing handguns from licensed dealers. Everytown Law released the following statement applauding the decision. 

“We’re pleased that the Fourth Circuit has upheld the federal law restricting 18-20 year olds from purchasing handguns – a common-sense, data-backed tool for preventing gun violence that is entirely constitutional,” said Janet Carter, managing director of Second Amendment litigation at Everytown Law. “Firearms are the leading cause of death for children and teens, and this result will undoubtedly save lives. Today’s decision makes it even clearer that the Department of Justice must ask the Supreme Court to review the dangerous Fifth Circuit decision striking down the same law.” 

Research shows that 18- to 20-year-olds commit gun homicides at triple the rate of adults 21 years and older. Firearms are the leading cause of death for young people ages 18 to 20, and the firearm suicide rate among this group has increased 31% in the last decade. What’s more, a new JAMA Pediatrics report found that “permissive firearm laws contributed to thousands of excess firearm deaths among children living in states with permissive policies” in the years since the Supreme Court allowed Second Amendment challenges to state gun laws.

This ruling comes as the U.S. Department of Justice weighs whether to seek Supreme Court review to fight the Fifth Circuit’s reckless ruling in Reese v. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, in which they recklessly ruled against this same federal law. In March 2023, Everytown filed amicus briefs in both the Fourth and Fifth Circuits arguing that the federal restrictions are constitutional under the approach to Second Amendment cases set out in New York Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen. More on the constitutionality of firearm purchasing age restrictions can be found here. The DOJ’s deadline to seek certiorari in Reese is June 27th.