Attorney General Bonta: States Must Retain Authority to Set Age-Based Restrictions for Firearms

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta, as part of a coalition of 20 attorneys general, filed a brief in support of a Minnesota law setting the minimum age at 21 for securing a permit to carry a handgun in public. The case, Worth v. Jacobson, is currently pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. The coalition’s brief argues that a lower court erred in its decision to strike down the law as unconstitutional under the Second Amendment and that the court’s reasoning could undermine efforts by states to protect their citizens through the application of similar age-limitations laws. In fact, a majority of states across the nation impose some age-based restrictions on the possession, purchase, or use of firearms reflecting their collective judgment that such laws promote public safety and curb gun violence within their borders.

“States must have the ability to protect their citizens and communities from gun violence,” said Attorney General Bonta. “The district court's decision to overturn Minnesota's law is inconsistent with our nation's historical tradition as well as longstanding state and federal laws imposing age-based restrictions on the purchase and possession of firearms.  We stand with Minnesota and other states in their effort to curb gun violence through these kinds of commonsense laws that improve public safety."

In the brief, the states assert that Minnesota’s law is constitutional under the Second Amendment and is consistent with states’ authority and a historical tradition of state regulations promoting gun safety and protecting communities from gun violence. The coalition argues that the district court’s decision to strike down Minnesota’s law misreads the U.S. Supreme Court’s Bruen decision, which preserves states’ authority to regulate firearms through laws that are “consistent with the Second Amendment’s text and historical understanding.”

Attorney General Bonta urges the Court of Appeals to overturn the district court decision because:

• The Second Amendment allows states to enact varied measures to promote gun safety and protect against gun violence consistent with historical tradition, and states have long exercised this power by enacting laws to promote safety, prevent crime, and minimize gun violence within their borders.
• Minnesota’s age-based restrictions are consistent with measures taken by other states and fall comfortably within states’ authority to regulate firearms. A majority of states and the District of Columbia impose age-based restrictions regarding the use, purchase, or possession of firearms, and a majority of states have determined that those under the age of 21 should be more restricted in their ability to carry firearms in public. Courts have previously upheld these restrictions relying on the historical record as is now required by Bruen.

This continues the ongoing work of Attorney General Bonta to protect the public from gun violence. Recently, the Attorney General launched a first-in-the-nation Office of Gun Violence Prevention, took legal action against ghost gun retailers, advocated for and defended commonsense gun laws, worked on the ground to keep firearms out of the hands of dangerous individuals, and announced Senate Bill 2 (SB 2), to strengthen California's existing concealed carry weapon (CCW) laws. California’s Assembly Bill 1594 (AB 1594), which was sponsored by Attorney General Bonta and signed into law in July 2022, creates a pathway for Californians who have been harmed by gun violence to hold the appropriate parties — including gun manufacturers and distributors — accountable. AB 1594 went into effect in California on July 1, 2023. 

Attorney General Bonta also provided grants to local law enforcement to support activities related to seizing weapons from individuals prohibited from possessing them, called on credit card companies to do their part to end illegal gun trafficking and mass shootings, and promoted the use of the state’s red flag laws to remove weapons from individuals who pose a danger to themselves or others.

Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of Illinois, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia in filing the brief.

A copy of the brief can be found here.