NRA lawsuit challenges post office carry ban

The National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners Foundation, and three NRA members on May 26 filed a lawsuit challenging the federal prohibition on carrying firearms at U.S. post offices.

Federal law prohibits knowingly possessing a firearm in a federal facility — including a U.S. post office — as well as carrying firearms on postal property. Violations are punishable by a fine, up to one year of imprisonment, or both.

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The complaint argues that the post office carry ban violates the Second Amendment under the Supreme Court’s text-and-history test set forth in NYSRPA v. Bruen. In Bruen, the court held that the Second Amendment protects the right to carry handguns publicly for self-defense and that firearm regulations must be consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.

The lawsuit notes that although the first post office was established in 1639 and the Post Office Department was established by the Second Continental Congress in 1775, firearms were not prohibited in post offices until 1972. The complaint therefore contends that the post office carry ban contradicts the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation and is thus unconstitutional.

The case, Hornbake v. Blanche, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

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