BELLEVUE, Wash. — Oct. 7, 2025 — The Eastern District of Louisiana has issued its judgment granting declaratory and injunctive relief in Reese v. ATF, Second Amendment Foundation’s (SAF) challenge to the federal law which prevents licensed firearm dealers from selling or transferring handguns to adults under 21.
In drafting its judgment, the Court appears to have adopted the Government’s position that the scope of the injunction – who’s protected by it – is a population of people that is essentially zero. In so doing the court simultaneously declares the challenged ban to violate the rights of individuals aged 18 to 20 but allows its continued enforcement against all of them.
Earlier this year, a three-judge panel of the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals held that the young adult handgun purchase ban was unconstitutional under the Second Amendment and remanded the case back to the district court for entry of a judgment to that effect. The judgment entered today limits the organizational membership relief to individuals who were members of the plaintiff organizations as of the filing of the case, on Nov. 6, 2020, and who are located within the geographical bounds of the Fifth Circuit (Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana). The judgment also requires that the organizations produce a list of those affected members within 21 days of the judgment.
“The practical effect of this order is almost laughable if it wasn’t so frustrating and didn’t impact the Second Amendment rights of thousands of individuals,” said SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut. “What the court has done here is say that this law is unconstitutional, but in order for an 18-year-old to avoid having their constitutional rights trounced by it today they must live in one of only three states in the nation and have been the member of SAF at age 13. And even then, they’re only covered if SAF discloses their membership to the government under duress. We’re currently examining our options in relation to the relief granted and will vigorously defend our members’ right to free association and privacy of such.”
SAF is joined in Reese v. ATF by the Firearms Policy Coalition, Louisiana Shooting Association and three private citizens, Joseph Granich, Emily Naquin and Caleb Reese, for whom the case is named.
“Today’s Judgment in Reese challenges commonly accepted standards of associational standing and relief,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “SAF brings these cases on behalf of our members and through the generous support of our members. When we win, the relief we’ve secured rightly flows through to the entire membership and not just a small subset.”
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