Attorney General Paxton filed a motion for preliminary injunction in his lawsuit against Biden’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”). Gun Owners of America is partnering with Texas in the litigation.
The lawsuit aims to stop the ATF from imposing new, unlawful rules on pistol owners who utilize stabilizing braces. Americans have long used stabilizing braces for a number of different purposes, including to assist individuals with disabilities, prevent injury, and ensure that the weapons are more safely operated.
“I filed this lawsuit to ensure that pistol brace owners are protected from the anti-gun Left and the radical activists staffing Biden’s ATF,” said Paxton. “As the case moves through our legal system, I am hopeful that the court will protect the Constitutional rights of Americans by issuing a preliminary injunction against this rule. The law is on our side. We will prevail in this battle against the Biden Administration’s war on the Second Amendment.”
By defining a pistol with a stabilizing brace as a “short-barreled rifle,” ATF is unlawfully forcing a wider swath of law-abiding gun owners to register their firearm ownership. The rule itself is unconstitutional and illegal, as was the method by which the ATF instituted the new rule. Paxton’s lawsuit challenges these violations, and, if granted, the motion for preliminary injunction would stop the rule from taking effect until the case is decided on its merits.
Enjoining this unconstitutional policy is imperative because the Biden Administration intends to apply draconian punishments to any violation of the new rule. Americans who have lawfully used stabilizing braces for years could face up to ten years in prison if they do not rapidly comply with the arbitrary new legal designation.