In layman’s terms: A 2A rights group is suing the ATF for banning sales of handguns by FFLs to individuals who do not live in that state.
Just one day after President Trump was sworn into office, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) and FPC Action Foundation (FPCAF) filed a lawsuit challenging the federal prohibition on firearms dealers selling handguns to out-of-state buyers.
For example, today, under federal law, someone who can legally purchase a handgun in Wyoming may not buy one in Tennessee, regardless of the fact that they undergo the SAME background check using the federal NICS system.
The lawsuit will be very interesting in that the named defendants, the acting Attorney General of the United States, and the acting Director of the ATF are both appointed by the pro-Second Amendment Trump administration. This is the first major Second Amendment lawsuit served against the Federal Government under the new administration.
The plaintiffs in the case, known as Elite Precision Customs v. ATF, includes two individual FPC members as well a federally licensed firearm retailer in Texas.
The complaint (only 13 pages in length) is a simple application of the Second Amendment and applies the Bruen analytical framework to the federal ban:
The Court observed that “the earliest known state residency restrictions on the purchase or possession of firearms” occurred in 1909. (“Defendants have not presented, and the Court cannot find, any earlier evidence of longstanding interstate, geographybased, or residency-based firearms restrictions.”)
In summary the complaint notes:
In short, the United States could not muster “any evidence of founding-era thinking that contemplated that interstate, geography-based, or residency-based firearm restrictions would be acceptable,”
“FPC and our courageous co-plaintiffs are proud to take on the federal government and fight forward to bring this evil ban scheme to its end,” said FPC President Brandon Combs, in an email statement. “This important case is part of our broader strategic litigation efforts to eliminate laws that deny the right of peaceable people to exercise their right to acquire, possess, and carry arms while outside their state of residence. Through this case and others, we look forward to eliminating these immoral regulatory schemes once and for all.”
We will continue to follow and report on this case.
