A monumental court decision in Texas set up a huge win for gun owners this month. On Thursday, the Trump DOJ decided not to appeal before the order to took effect, which led to the first time in 90 years, a transfer of a sound suppressor was completed without the requirements of ATF paperwork, a tax and fingerprinting.
But that transfer occurred in Texas, with a specific company (Silencer Shop), who was the plaintiff in the court case, and with their customers.
The gun community cheered the public event, while wondering how that would impact retailers in other states.
United States District Judge James Hendrix wrote in his decision:
the plaintiffs are entitled to a permanent injunction barring enforcement of the challenged NFA provisions against them, their members, and their customers. But that is as far as it goes. Federal courts lack power to issue universal injunctions that provide relief to parties not before the Court.”
Minnesota retailers and customers of those retailers are not parties before the Court that made the ruling.
We spoke to one of Minnesota’s big suppressor shops, Scheels in Eden Prairie. They are awaiting further guidance from the ATF before changing how they handle their sales. Scheels and other retailers still use the requirements that were in place before Judge Hendrix’s decision took effect.
As it stands today, customers interested in buying suppressors in the state, will likely still be required to fill out the ATF Form 4 (without paying a $200 tax); submit fingerprints and photo ID to the federal government and fill out a Form 4473 (Firearms Transaction Record).
Let’s hope the Trump Administration provides guidance soon so suppressors can be sold and transferred all over the United States without the government’s unconstitutional requirements.
