Seeking Cover from the Trigger-Happy ATF: Does the ATF Satisfy Bruen?
By Chad P. Wilson
Publication Date
July 16, 2025
Abstract
The governing methodology articulated by the U.S. Supreme Court in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen has spawned no small amount of Second Amendment litigation. Largely unscathed by this legal revolution, however, is the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms: the agency at the forefront of federal gun regulation. While the ATF is no stranger to legal challenges, lawsuits brought against the agency generally take aim at its statutory authority—rather than its constitutional authority, as limited by the Second Amendment. This paper delves into the history preceding the enactment of the Second Amendment and draws a parallel between the pattern of executive abuses and disarmament that gave rise to the Second Amendment and its English predecessor: the 1686 Bill of Rights. This shared history, coupled with the broad sweep of American firearm regulatory tradition, compels the conclusion that the Second Amendment forbids unilateral encroachment on the right to bear arms by the executive branch.
Recommended Citation
Chad P. Wilson, Seeking Cover from the Trigger-Happy ATF: Does the ATF Satisfy Bruen? (Firearms Rsch. Ctr., Working Paper No. 2025-6).
