Massachusetts Slammed With Federal Lawsuit Over Age-Based Gun Ban

Massachusetts was hit with another lawsuit over its controversial gun ban for adults between the ages of 18 and 20 years old.

BY Jacki Billings, Editor-In-Chief,

Published February 19, 2025

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The state of Massachusetts was sued this week over a law that bans possessing or carrying a handgun for adults under the age of 21.

The federal lawsuit challenges H.B. 4885, also known as An Act Modernizing Firearm Laws, was signed by Gov. Maura Healy in July 2024. The law prohibits adults under 21 from buying, owning, or carrying a semi-auto firearm in the state.

Led by 19-year-old Mack Escher, a student at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, the suit sees several prominent gun rights groups join in to fight against what they call an infringement on Second Amendment rights.

Alongside Escher, the Gun Owners’ Action League, Commonwealth Second Amendment, Firearms Policy Coalition, Second Amendment Foundation, National Rifle Association, and Gun Owners of America are all fighting to restore gun rights to those in the 18-to-20-year-old age group.

“Massachusetts’s law barring 18-20-year-olds from being able to acquire, possess, and carry commonly possessed firearms fails to comport with the Constitution’s command,” SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut said in a statement.

“These adult individuals are entitled to the full scope of the Second Amendment’s protections, yet the State has opted to affirmatively treat them as if they have less rights. An honest look at our nation’s history and tradition will only yield one result, that is, this law is blatantly unconstitutional.”

According to the lawsuit, Escher was previously able to hunt using his father’s semi-auto rifle, but the change in law means that his Firearms Identification Card would no longer cover hunting with a semi-auto due to his age.

Leaning on the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in the infamous Bruen decision, the lawsuit argues that the ban violates the historic tradition of firearm regulation and, thus, should not be enforced.

Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoffrey Noble, Department of Criminal Justice Information Services Commissioner Jamie Gagnon, and Brewster Police Chief Heath J. Eldredge are among the defendants.

This is the third federal lawsuit filed against the state over H.B. 4855.