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The Department of Justice isn’t waiting around for someone else to defend the Second Amendment.
On Wednesday, the DOJ filed two separate lawsuits against California and Virginia, arguing both states crossed the constitutional line by banning firearms that millions of Americans lawfully own.
Taken together, the lawsuits send a clear message: the Trump administration intends to use the federal government not just to defend federal gun laws. But to challenge state gun restrictions it believes violate the Constitution.
California: DOJ Targets Glock Ban
The first lawsuit takes aim at California’s newly enacted “Glock Ban,” along with the state’s long-running Handgun Roster.
According to the DOJ, California’s new law effectively prevents residents from purchasing Glock pistols and other handguns that use similar firing mechanisms, while the Handgun Roster continues restricting which handguns dealers may legally sell.
The Second Amendment is a sacred right belonging to all Americans, even those in California,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said.
California cannot ban the most popular type of handgun in America.
The lawsuit also points to the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Wolford v. Lopez, arguing that states cannot prohibit law-abiding citizens from acquiring commonly used firearms for self-defense.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said the Civil Rights Division intends to continue defending gun owners against unconstitutional state firearm regulations.
“The Civil Rights Division will defend law-abiding citizens from states that seek to disarm them illegally,” Dhillon said.
Virginia: AR-15 Ban Faces Federal Challenge
Just hours later, the Justice Department announced another lawsuit. This time against Virginia.
The DOJ argues the Commonwealth’s newly enacted law banning the commercial sale of AR-15-style rifles violates the Second Amendment because it prohibits firearms owned by millions of Americans.
“The Constitution is not a suggestion, and the Second Amendment is not a second-class right,” Blanche said.
This Justice Department has done more to protect the Second Amendment than any administration in our nation’s history.
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Dhillon noted she had previously warned Virginia officials that litigation would follow if the legislation became law.
“On April 10, I promised Governor Spanberger that we would sue Virginia if she signed this unconstitutional weapons ban into law,” Dhillon said. “I keep my promises.”
The DOJ contends AR-15-style rifles are among the most commonly owned firearms in the country and argues Virginia cannot criminalize their sale consistent with Supreme Court precedent.
A Different DOJ Strategy
Regardless of where someone stands on gun policy, these lawsuits represent a notable shift in how the federal government is approaching the Second Amendment.
For years, gun-rights organizations typically carried the burden of challenging state firearm restrictions. Now, the Justice Department itself is bringing those fights.
That could significantly raise the stakes for states pursuing aggressive firearm regulations.
Both lawsuits are being handled through the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and its newly established Second Amendment Section, which was created specifically to investigate and litigate alleged violations of Americans’ right to keep and bear arms.
Whether these challenges ultimately succeed will be decided in federal court. But what we do know now is the DOJ isn’t sitting on the sidelines anymore.
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is a seasoned outdoorsman, lifelong hunter, and the kind of guy who’d rather track whitetails than scroll social media. As an editor for GunsAmerica, he’s got a sharp eye for spotting both solid gear and bad gun laws. Whether he’s deep in the woods or deep in editorial deadlines, Larry brings a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is approach to firearms, hunting, and the great American tradition of self-reliance. If there’s a hot debate on gun rights or the latest in hunting tech, you can bet Larry’s got an opinion—and it’s probably backed up with both facts and field experience.
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This is great, I appreciate the shift in the DOJ, but now get your butts into Colorado before I have to move out of here. After the last three years of super-majority democrat rule, our gun laws are more restrictive than even California. SB3 that goes into full effect August 1 is the most restrictive in the Nation. While the DOJ is at it, how about directing the ATF to stop their draconian rule making, drop the registration of suppressors, and concentrate on illegal use of guns instead of law abiding gun owners.
Thank you for speaking up about Washington, Bill. I’ve lived there for 78 years and every year we’re faced with more and more restrictive gun laws from our Democrat government in Olympia. They literally own the two most populated counties (King & Pierce) so they don’t have to worry about getting re-elected and they don’t care about our Constitutional rights. We haven’t been able to buy an AR-15 (or any other similar rifle) in this state for several years. No threaded barrels, no magazines over 10 rounds, no hand grips on shotguns or rifles, extra fees on semi-automatic weapons of any kind, and lots of really stupid laws that put pressure on dealers (cameras, barred windows, etc), all of which have put a lot of them out of business. And that’s exactly what these left-wing radicals want to do. The rest of our state is pretty much conservative but we’re helpless because the majority of the population is on the west side in those two counties I’ve mentioned and they’re the ones electing these idiots. It’s very frustrating to say the least but seeing our federal government finally stepping up to the plate at least gives us hope.
When are they going to come to Washington State and defend the 2nd Amendment here???? We have an unconstitutional ban on magazines holding more than 10 rounds, and AR 15s as well as all “assault style weapons” are banned too, based mainly on cosmetic “scary looking” features.
it’s about time we have a government that protects the constitution rather than thumb it’s nose at it!!!
Selective protection at best, and only when it serves Trump’s political interests. He’s losing support all around ahead of the mid-terms, and these are easy-wins to bolster his otherwise lackluster constitutional credentials. Were he a Constitutionalist, Adamiak would’ve been pardoned first instead of hundreds of rioters trying to disrupt a constitutional process.