2A Groups Challenge Vermont Waiting Period

 

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) and a coalition of prominent gun rights organizations have filed an amicus curiae brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, urging the court to strike down Vermont's 72-hour waiting period for firearm purchases.

The brief supports the plaintiffs-appellants in the case, Vt. Fed. of Sportsmen’s Clubs, Inc. v. Birmingham, arguing that the district court’s previous ruling upholding the waiting period misapplied the historical test established by the Supreme Court in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen.

 Bruen and Rahimi by misapplying the Second Amendment’s historical test and creating a false ‘fork’ in the analysis for so-called ‘ancillary’ rights, and by relying on unserious analogues like laws disarming intoxicated persons."

Moros emphasized the lack of historical tradition for such restrictions, noting, “History shows no tradition of waiting periods, even as mass production made guns widely available in the 19th century.” The groups are urging the Second Circuit to "reverse and restore the proper Bruen framework."

The brief leverages recent legal victories and historical context to bolster its claim. It notes that the Tenth Circuit recently struck down a similar waiting period in Ortega v. Grisham, and points out that several other challenges to waiting periods are currently pending nationwide.

Furthermore, the brief relies on primary historical sources, including newspaper advertisements offering firearms for sale as far back as 1745, to demonstrate a long-standing tradition of immediate access to arms.

Alan M. Gottlieb, SAF founder and Executive Vice President, characterized the waiting period as an unconstitutional infringement. “The right to keep and bear arms doesn’t have a timestamp and should be afforded to anyone wishing to legally purchase a firearm,” Gottlieb said. He concluded that "waiting periods to exercise a constitutional right are impermissible and are a direct infringement on the Second Amendment rights of peaceable citizens.”