It is no longer constitutional to bar people charged with a felony from buying guns, a federal judge in Texas ruled Monday. U.S. District Judge David Kotz, appointed by former President Donald Trump to the Western District of Texas, found that a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling from June invalidated a federal law barring those charged with a felony from owning a gun . It was not immediately clear whether the decision would be appealed. This summer, the Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, written by Justice Clarence Thomas, struck down the concealed carry law and ruled that courts henceforth should uphold gun restrictions only if there is a tradition of them in US history. Counts said he found no such history of restricting access to guns for those accused but not convicted of a felony, though he acknowledged his search was not “exhaustive.” In the same decision, Counts both dismissed the charge of obtaining a firearm while under indictment and noted that it is unknown “whether a bill preventing an indicted person from obtaining a firearm is consistent with this Nation’s historic tradition of regulating of firearms”. Also unknown, he said, is “the constitutionality of firearms regulations in a post-Bruen world.” “The Court does not know the answers. he just has to try to follow Bruen’s framework closely,” he said. In an earlier filing, the U.S. attorney’s office said the law barring those charged with a felony from obtaining guns does not interfere with the Second Amendment “because it does not disarm felony defendants who already possessed guns and does not prohibit possession or public transportation.” . “The Second Amendment has always permitted laws that limit the gun rights of groups deemed by legislatures to pose a danger to public safety, including those accused but not convicted of a wrongdoing,” the attorney general’s office wrote. The Texas case arose out of the conviction of a man who had bought a gun while under indictment and lied about it during his background check, according to Counts’ ruling. Last year, while charged with burglary and missing court, Jose Gomez Quiroz tried to buy a semi-automatic handgun at an Alpine store. He denied being under any charge on his background check form and, after waiting seven days for approval, picked up his new gun. Days later, the federal system notified that the purchase was illegal. He was sentenced on the same day as the Supreme Court decision. Almost immediately, he appealed, arguing that the New York decision invalidated the law he violated. Measurements agreed. “The Second Amendment is not a ‘second-class right,’” he ruled. “Courts can no longer balance a constitutional right.” Nicole Golden, executive director of Texas Gun Sense, said there have long been “reasonable limitations” on the right to bear arms enshrined in the Second Amendment. “Support for common sense gun laws has been very high, especially this summer after Uvalde,” Golden said. “This feels very much in violation of what I think the public expects in terms of how we deal with our public safety.” Jesus Vidales contributed to this report. The Texas Tribune Festival is almost here! From Thursday through Saturday, September 22-24, in downtown Austin, TribFest attendees will enjoy three days filled with mind-bending events, discussions and panels featuring more than 350 big names, including Chris Bosh, Pete Buttigieg, Liz Cheney, Annette Gordon-Reed and many others. Join us for Texas’ largest political and civic event when you purchase your tickets today.
