Young Guns: The Battle Over Handgun Sales to 18-20 Year Olds

Recently, a significant legal change occurred when a court ruled to allow the sale of handguns to Americans between the ages of 18 and 20. The court's decision seemed to be based on following previous Supreme Court decisions. However, this ruling is more likely to escalate the debate around gun rights and the Second Amendment. The court's decision appears to have overlooked the severe impact of gun violence in the United States. The reality is the U. S. is facing a serious issue with gun violence. In 2023, there were 43, 223 gun-related deaths, which included 24, 156 suicides and 16, 690 homicides, murders, and unintentional deaths. This number slightly decreased in 2024 to 40, 846. To put this into perspective, in the first nine months of 2024, 29, 135 people died in traffic crashes. However, the court didn't acknowledge this critical information. The court's ruling was based on historical precedents from the 18th century. However, the current situation with gun violence and the reasons behind the original ban on handgun sales to people under 21 were not taken into account. The court quoted a 2024 Supreme Court decision stating that any gun regulation "beyond what was done at the founding" is unconstitutional, even if it has a valid reason. The court ignored the current situation and the reason why, more than five decades ago, Congress banned the sale of handguns, but not other firearms, to people under the age of 21. The court overlooked the fact that young people aged 18 to 20 are more likely to commit deadly shootings than other age groups. The decision seems to disregard the fact that the problem of gun violence is more severe among younger people. 18-20 year olds commit gun homicides at triple the rate of adults 21 and older. Research also shows that 18 to 20-year-olds commit fatal shootings at "three times the rate of 16-year-olds" and nearly "three times the rate of a person in their 30s. "This age group makes up 4% of the U. S. population but commits 17% of gun homicides. The ruling seems to suggest that young people are more likely to act impulsively and make poor decisions. This is supported by Justice Anthony Kennedy, who noted in 2005 that adolescents are overrepresented in every category of reckless behavior. This is especially true when it comes to guns. The ruling also seems to ignore the fact that the Supreme Court has changed its approach to gun rights and regulation over the years. In 2008, Justice Scalia wrote that the Second Amendment right is not unlimited and that longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms should not be questioned. However, in 2022, the court turned away from this balancing approach to gun regulation. The 2022 decision by the Supreme Court in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen stated that any gun regulation is only valid if it is "consistent with the Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation. " This means that modern concerns, like dealing with gun violence, are irrelevant. The court also noted that the Second Amendment permits more than just regulations identical to those existing in 1791. It said that a gun regulation that is "relatively similar" to laws that our tradition is understood to permit could be upheld. The 5th Circuit's decision seems to be based on a skewed interpretation of history. The court identified many laws with age-related restrictions from more than two centuries ago but dismissed them as not meeting the burden to establish a historical tradition of firearm restrictions imposed on 18-20 year old Americans. The court also ignored the fact that serving in a militia is quite different from possessing a handgun on the streets of a 21st-century American city. The court's decision seems to be more about making more guns available to more people than about logic or analogy. The ruling also seems to disregard the fact that people under the age of 21 will still not be able legally to buy alcohol anywhere in this country. But they will be able to buy handguns.