(José Niño, Headline USA) The Trump Department of Justice appears to be changing its controversial position of the Second Amendment not protecting firearms suppressors.
After Gun Owners of America and Gun Owners Foundation revealed that the U.S. Attorney Michael Simpson filed a brief this Monday arguing that firearm suppressors are not protected by the Second Amendment, the DOJ is now requesting 30 days to reconsider its brief.
🚨BREAKING🚨
The Department of Justice will reconsider its incorrect position that suppressors are not arms and are not protected by the Second Amendment. https://t.co/mQ8aNkuwnC pic.twitter.com/USL40YFvp7
— Gun Owners Foundation (@GunFoundation) March 20, 2025
After GOA & @gunfoundation broke the news that a Biden-era holdover acting U.S. Attorney argued that suppressors were NOT arms & were NOT protected by the Second Amendment, @thejusticedept is requesting 30 days to reconsider its anti-gun brief.
This is HUGE! 🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/edhoChRNSk
— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) March 20, 2025
The case here is concerned with George Peterson, a firearm business owner who was indicted for possessing an unregistered suppressor under the National Firearms Act (NFA) after law enforcement raided his home. Peterson subsequently challenged the constitutionality of the NFA’s suppressor registration requirement.
The Fifth Circuit then ruled that suppressors do not constitute “arms” as enshrined in Second Amendment. Chief Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod opined that a suppressor “by itself, is not a weapon” and without being attached to a gun, “it would not be of much use for self-defense.”
Simpson’s recent contention aligns with the Fifth Circuit’s earlier decision on Feb. 6, 2025, which held that suppressors are not protected “arms” under the Second Amendment. Simpson claimed that the National Firearms Act’s regulation of suppressors is consistent with historical firearm regulations and does not infringe on constitutional rights.
However, pressure from pro-gun organizations such as GOA have prompted the government to request “this Court [to] delay its ruling on Peterson’s petition for 30 days to allow it an opportunity to further consider its position.”
The topic of firearms suppressors has become a controversial facet of the gun control debate following Luigi Mangione’s assassination of UnitedHealthCare CEO Brian Thompson, where he allegedly used a 3D-printed firearm and 3D-printed suppressor.
José Niño is the deputy editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/JoseAlNino
