The Justice Department announced in a press release on Friday that federal statutes prohibiting licensed dealers from selling handguns to law-abiding adults ages 18 to 20 are unconstitutional and cannot be criminally enforced.

The department's Office of Legal Counsel issued a 49-page legal opinion finding that the restrictions in 18 U.S.C. § 922(b)(1) and (c)(1) conflict with the Second Amendment as interpreted by the Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller, New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen, and later cases including Wolford v. Lopez. The opinion states that individuals ages 18 to 20 fall within “the people” protected by the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.

Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser, who leads the Office of Legal Counsel, explained the reasoning in the document. “Eighteen-year-olds may vote, serve on juries, be drafted, and face adult criminal penalties, including capital punishment,” Gaiser wrote. “The Constitution protects the people’s right to keep and bear arms. The Department of Justice may not constitutionally seek to impose criminal penalties on dealers who sell handguns to law-abiding adults who, in nearly every other relevant respect, are members of the political community.”

The statutes in question have long barred federally licensed firearms dealers from selling handguns or handgun ammunition to anyone under 21. The new opinion concludes only that these provisions may not be enforced through criminal penalties against dealers for sales to otherwise eligible buyers in the 18-to-20 age group. It leaves intact other federal rules, such as prohibitions on possession by those under 18 and background check requirements.

The decision aligns with recent rulings from several federal appeals courts that have struck down similar age-based restrictions under the Bruen framework. The Supreme Court declined to review related cases earlier this year. The opinion comes amid the Trump administration’s efforts through the Civil Rights Division’s Second Amendment section to address gun rights issues.

Gun rights advocates have long argued that the ban improperly treats responsible young adults as minors despite their legal responsibilities in other areas of civic life. The Justice Department’s position reinforces that view by emphasizing historical tradition and the plain text of the Second Amendment.