Ban on Guns in Post Office is Unconstitutional: Fifth Circuit

Judge Reed O'Conner, a Chief United States District judge in the Fifth Circuit, has determined the ban on possession and carry of arms in common use in Post Offices and on property owned by the Post Office is an infringement on the rights protected by the Second Amendment. From the decision:

 The Court determines that both 18 U.S.C. § 930(a) and 39 C.F.R. § 232.1(1) are inconsistent with the principles that underpin this Nation’s regulatory tradition. Thus, they are unconstitutional as-applied to carrying firearms inside a an ordinary post office or on post office property.

The decision was published on September 30, 2025, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division. The case is Firearms Policy Coalition Inc, et al., v. Pamela Bondi.  The Second Amendment Foundation and two Texas citizens, Gavin Pate and George Mandry were also parties to the lawsuit against the Federal government as represented by Pamela Bondi, United States Attorney General (AG). The original lawsuit was brought against Merrick Garland when he was AG, on June 18, 2024.

Both the regulatory ban on firearms or other weapons in Post Offices and the Statutory ban on weapons in federal government buildings are relatively recent.  The first prohibition on firearms in government buildings occurred in 1964. The regulatory ban on weapons in Post Offices was put in place in 1972.

Judge O'Conner handed down a summary judgement, which is appropriate when the facts of the case are not disputed. The only dispute in this case is about the law. Because the plaintiffs did not specify whether the case was a facial challenge or an "as applied" challenge, Judge O'Conner decided to treat it as an "as applied" challenge. The remedy only applies to the plaintiffs carrying ordinary firearms in an ordinary post office.

The judgement is limited to Plaintiffs carrying firearms inside of an ordinary post office or the surrounding post office property, with the exception of post offices inside of restricted areas. Examples of such restricted areas include military bases or post offices located in federal buildings which otherwise prohibit the carry of firearms.  It appears the Plantiffs will be able to carry firearms in most of the post offices in the USA. Plaintiffs include all members of the Second Amendment Foundation and the Firearms Coalition as well as the two individual Plaintiffs.

The judgement applies to both 39 C.F.R. § 232.1(1) and 18 U.S.C. § 930(a). 39 C.F.R.  is a post office regulation. 18 U.S.C. § 930(a) is a United States statute. This case only applies in the Fifth Circuit of the United States. The Fifth Circuit includes Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. It is unknown if the USA will appeal the Fifth Circuit decision on the carry and possession of firearms in Post Offices.  In recent developments, the United States Department of Justice has refused to appeal a criminal case in Florida challenging the USA ban on the carry of firearms in Post Offices. Florida is in the Eleventh Circuit.

The Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit upheld the ban on firearms in Post Offices in 2015  in Bonidy v. USPS. The Bonidy case ended in a 2-1 decision in 2015. The Bonidy decision happened before the Supreme Court admonished the inferior courts on how they treated Second Amendment jurisprudence, with the Bruen decision in 2022.

Analysis: It is likely the Supreme Court will strike down the ban on firearms in Post Offices when they hear a case on the subject. There is no historical tradition of such a ban when the Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791 or during the period when the 14th Amendment was ratified on July 9th, 1868. The Supreme Court has limited resources. A challenge to the ban on firearms in Post Offices may not reach the Supreme Court for several years.

 

©2025 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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