Minnesota Gun Control Law Found Unconstitutional

(KNSI) — A federal judge overturns a long-standing Minnesota gun control law, saying it violated the Second Amendment.

U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez wrote in a Friday opinion that a 2003 law that prohibits 18 to 20-year-olds from holding a permit to carry a handgun in public is illegal. The lawsuit was brought by three individuals, including one woman, with support from the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, Firearms Policy Coalition, and the Second Amendment Foundation.

Recently retired Minnesota Department of Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington was named as a defendant in the case. State officials have not said if they will appeal.

Menendez says, “The Founders placed age requirements elsewhere in the Constitution…In other words, the Founders considered age and knew how to set age requirements but placed no such restrictions on rights, including those protected by the Second Amendment.” The United States Supreme Court last year in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association vs. Bruen said courts can only allow gun control regulations to remain on the books if they were in line with historical precedents.

The 50-page Worth, et. al v. Harrington decision can be viewed in its entirety here.

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