DOJ holds off on appeal of gun law, giving hope to Second Amendment groups
—
WASHINGTON (TNND) — The Justice Department has held off on appealing a gun law, giving hope to Second Amendment groups while disappointing gun control organizations.
U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix, a Trump appointee, last week ruled that parts of the 1934 National Firearms Act could no longer stand, giving the DOJ a seven-day window to file an emergency appeal, The Hill reported.
The DOJ has yet to appeal, and while it still can, the ruling has now taken effect.
While gun control groups are worried that the DOJ is abandoning its defense of the law, Second Amendment organizations and Republicans are hoping it does drop the nearly century-old statute.
“Today, our government is failing us,” Brady president Kris Brown said in a statement. “At midnight, uniquely lethal weapons and devices — including silencers, short-barreled rifles, and shotguns — were deregulated for the first time in nearly a century. The Department of Justice had the opportunity to act to protect our safety, but it failed to do so.”
“We’re thrilled that Americans are one big step closer to being free of the unconstitutional NFA registration scheme,” Second Amendment Foundation Executive Director Adam Kraut said in a statement. “While the excitement of the moment is palpable, it’s important to remember that the government still has time to appeal the ruling, so it’s not quite time to break out the champagne.”
The NFA implemented a $200 fee to transfer or make certain firearms. Congress relied on its taxing power to pass the 1934 law, but last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act eliminated the tax for short-barreled shotguns, short-barreled rifles, and silencers.
Hendrix ruled last week that the newer law’s provisions meant those old restrictions can no longer stand. He issued an injunction blocking enforcement of the NFA against a group of individuals, businesses, and Republican-led states who are suing over the law.
The judge delayed his ruling by a week to allow the Trump administration to first seek emergency relief from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, but that window has now expired.
A DOJ spokesperson told The Hill regarding an appeal of the decision, “The Department respects Americans’ Second Amendment rights and is currently assessing the impact of the court’s ruling.”
The 1934 law is currently in a state of limbo.
VIDEO
The DOJ’s defense of the NFA became a point of friction between Second Amendment groups and the administration, and pressure is growing for it to back away.
Nearly four dozen GOP lawmakers, led by Rep. Andrew Clyde, Ga., sent Attorney General Todd Blanche a letter on Tuesday urging him to not appeal the ruling.
“An appeal would prolong regulatory uncertainty for law-abiding gun owners and businesses and would consume DOJ resources defending a position that this Congress and now a federal district court has said cannot stand,” the letter reads.
The government has a 60-day window from last week’s ruling if it wants to appeal.
“This decision is a clear sign that under the leadership of AG Blanche, who has strong family ties to the gun industry, DOJ is more concerned with protecting gun companies than public safety. We demand that AG Blanche appeal this dangerous ruling,” Everytown for Gun Safety President John Feinblatt said in a statement.
