Department of Justice Issues Rule to Restore Lost Gun Rights

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued an interim final rule to assume responsibility from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) for deciding whether to restore the right to own a gun to individuals whose Second Amendment rights have been rescinded by a court. Since 1968, people whose gun rights had been revoked could petition the U.S. Attorney General to have their rights restored under federal statute 18 U.S.C. 925(c). Over time, the attorney general delegated that authority to the ATF. In October 1992, then-Rep. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.)—now the Senate Minority Leader—amended an ATF funding bill to prohibit the agency from using federal funds to process applications for the restoration of rights...