The Office of Legal Counsel, led by Assistant Attorney General Elliot Gaiser, concluded that the statute barring licensed dealers from selling handguns to 18‑ to 20‑year‑olds infringes on the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.
Gaiser noted that eighteen‑year‑olds already possess full adult civic responsibilities—voting, jury service, the draft and exposure to adult criminal penalties—including capital punishment—so they should be treated as members of the political community for gun‑rights purposes.
Under the existing law, only persons 21 or older may purchase a handgun from a federally licensed dealer, while those aged 18 to 20 may buy handguns from private sellers; the same statute sets an 18‑year minimum for long‑gun purchases from licensed dealers.
The Department of Justice said it will not defend or prosecute cases involving the age restriction, effectively withdrawing federal enforcement of the provision. Federal appeals courts have been divided on the constitutionality of the ban, and the Supreme Court has not yet addressed the issue following its 2022 decision that reshaped the legal test for firearm restrictions.
Gun‑rights groups have praised the opinion as a victory for the second Trump administration’s rollback of firearms regulations, while gun‑control advocates such as Everytown Law warned that abandoning the age limit could jeopardize public safety.