Minnesota’s minimum age of 21 to carry guns unconstitutional, appeals court rules

Alex Derosier, Pioneer Press
Updated ·3 min read

A federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld a lower court decision that if left unchallenged will allow 18- to 20-year-olds to carry a concealed weapon in Minnesota.

The state’s current permit-to-carry statute allows people 21 and older to carry a firearm in public if they obtain a permit. Last year, a group of gun rights advocates sued to challenge the age limit, arguing it deprived adults under 21 of the constitutionally protected right to bear arms.

A Minnesota federal judge in 2023 sided with gun rights groups who brought the case on behalf of three plaintiffs under 21 seeking carry permits. The state then appealed the case.

Unanimous decision

In a unanimous opinion from the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Tuesday, judges agreed with the lower court’s finding that Minnesota’s age limit of 21 to obtain a concealed carry permit can not be enforced, as it deprives legal adults of constitutionally guaranteed rights.

“Ordinary, law-abiding 18 to 20-year-old Minnesotans are unambiguously members of the people,” wrote Judge William Duane Benton in the court’s opinion, joined by Judges Lavenski R. Smith and David R. Stras. “Because the plain text of the Second Amendment covers the plaintiffs and their conduct, it is presumptively constitutionally protected.”

In her ruling last year, U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez wrote that a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision requires regulations on guns to be weighed on whether they are consistent with the nation’s “historical tradition” of regulation, rather than public safety concerns.

At the time, Menendez expressed reservations about the required historical analysis sought by the Supreme Court in their ruling in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen.

“Judges are not historians,” she wrote. “The process of consulting historical sources to divine the intent of those responsible for ratifying constitutional amendments is fraught with potential for error and confirmation bias.”

Gun owners group applauds ruling

The Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, which brought the lawsuit along with other gun rights groups including the Firearms Policy Coalition and Second Amendment Foundation, hailed the Tuesday ruling as a “resounding victory.”

“Politicians should carefully consider the legal ramifications of infringing on Second Amendment rights,” Senior Vice President Rob Doar said in a news release. “The Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus and its allies will relentlessly pursue legal action against any unconstitutional measures introduced in Minnesota.”

People under the age of 21 and over the age of 18 will be able to apply for permits to carry unless the Minnesota Attorney General appeals the decision.

Attorney general ‘disappointed’ in ruling

In a statement, Attorney General Keith Ellison said that he was “disappointed” in the ruling and that the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen ruling expanding interpretation of the Second Amendment is an obstacle for efforts to prevent gun violence.

He noted Minnesota has had several shootings with multiple casualties this year, and that the person who tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump on Saturday was 20 years old.

“This epidemic of gun violence will continue unabated unless we do something about it,” Ellison said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the Supreme Court’s Bruen ruling made that far more difficult by opening the floodgates to litigation from gun advocacy groups looking to undo reasonable safety legislation.”

The state is weighing options which could include an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, Ellison’s office said.

Permit-to-carry law

Minnesota enacted its permit-to-carry law in 2003.

Applicants must take an approved firearms training course and apply at their local sheriff’s office. The sheriff’s office then investigates the applicant’s background before deciding whether to issue a permit.

Minnesota’s permit-to-carry law allows for the concealed and open carrying of firearms. Other states, such as Wisconsin and North Dakota, allow for open carrying of firearms under certain circumstances without a permit.

This story has been updated to clarify the status of Minnesota’s permit-to-carry statute pending an appeal by the state attorney general.

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