Federal Court: Ban Against Carrying Firearms on Post Office Property ‘Unconstitutional’

On Tuesday, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled that the ban on possession and carrying firearms on U.S. Post Office property is unconstitutional.

The case is Firearms Policy Coalition v. Pam Bondi.

Plaintiffs in the case were the Firearms Policy Coalition, the Second Amendment Foundation, and two Texas residents, Gavin Pate and George Mandry.

The court weighed the post office prohibitions in light of Bruen (2022) and Chief Judge Reed O’Connor wrote, “Reasoning by analogy, it is hard to see how post offices, while important, rise to the same level of importance or provide the same weighty government functions as legislative assemblies, polling places, and courthouses. Absent a relevantly similar historical analogue, it is hard to envision that the Founders would countenance banning firearms in the post office — particularly because they did not do so themselves.”

Subsequently, the court determined that the prohibitions on possessing firearms on postal property and carrying them “are inconsistent with the principles that underpin this Nation’s regulatory tradition.” Moreover, “They are unconstitutional as-applied to carrying firearms inside an ordinary post office or post office property.”

Ironically, “the Government” argued that the Bruen (2022) test was not apropos, but O’Connor begged to differ: “The Government argues that the Bruen analysis should not apply in this case because the ‘constitutional dimensions are different here than in the Supreme Court’s recent cases.’ Namely, because the Government ‘owns (or at least leases) the property at issue’ it is insulated from the Second Amendment’s requirements by the Constitution’s Property Clause and Post Office Clause.”

Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) founder and executive vice president Alan Gottlieb commented on the victory, saying, “This is a huge win for SAF and its members. There is no historical analogue to justify a ban on carrying a firearm on postal property, and we are pleased the court rightly saw through this thinly veiled attempt at preventing citizens from fully exercising their constitutional rights.”

The ruling against the ban has nationwide implications, not only for Americans who are members of the Firearms Policy Conference or the Second Amendment Foundation.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio, a member of Gun Owners of America, and the director of global marketing for Lone Star Hunts. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal in 2010 and has a Ph.D. in Military History. Follow him on X: @awrhawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.