Tipsheet

Justice Department Mulling Ban on Transgender People Owning Firearms

The Justice Department is reportedly considering banning transgender people from owning firearms in the wake of the school shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis.

A DOJ source told the Daily Wire that “individuals within the DOJ are reviewing ways to ensure that mentally ill individuals suffering from gender dysphoria are unable to obtain firearms while they are unstable and unwell.

A Justice Department spokesman told the Daily Wire that a “range of options” is being considered “to prevent mentally unstable individuals from committing acts of violence, especially at schools.”

Another officials said, “Democrats have called for common sense gun laws for a long time” and that “this seems pretty common sense to me.”

Robert “Robin” Westman, a young man who identified as a woman, killed two students at Annunciation Catholic Church and injured two dozen more. In his writings, it was clear that he struggled with his gender identity.

The same was true of Audrey Hale, the individual who killed six people at Covenant School in Nashville. 

If the Justice Department were to enact such a rule, it would almost certainly trigger legal challenges. Opponents would allege that it violates the Equal Protection Clause under the 14th Amendment. They could also allege that the rule is discriminatory because it singles people out based on their gender identity. There are also due process issues. Banning an entire class of citizens from owning firearms without due process isn’t going to fly in the courts — and it shouldn’t.

Moreover, the Second Amendment is clear: The right to keep and bear arms “shall not be infringed.” It does not say this right shall not be infringed “unless you’re a dude who thinks he’s a woman.”

Like most gun control laws, such a rule would be a clear violation of the Second Amendment — and it wouldn’t protect anyone. Gun control does not work. It only serves to make it harder for law-abiding people — including those who identify as transgender — to protect themselves.