Last year, Gun Owners of America (GOA) and other plaintiffs won a court victory over the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) unconstitutional final rule redefining who is “engaged in the business” of selling firearms.
The rule, pushed under the Biden Administration, was one more attempt to bring the country closer to so-called “universal” background checks. Now, Biden holdovers at the DOJ are attempting to stall the case by filing a motion asking for a stay, which could delay a resolution for an indefinite period of time.
In response, GOA, Gun Owners Foundation (GOF), and the states of Texas, Louisiana, Utah, and Mississippi have filed an opposition to the DOJ’s motion, arguing that a stay in the ruling could harm gun owners across the nation.
“To say there is a ‘fair possibility’ that a stay here will work damage to ‘someone else’ is an understatement,” the court document, filed on February 25, stated. “While Plaintiffs here have the benefit of a standing preliminary injunction against the unlawful Rule, millions of law-abiding gun owners do not. This includes the citizens of 46 states not covered by this Court’s injunction.”
Also in the response, GOA and the Texas Attorney General’s office made it clear that the DOJ’s request to stay the case only serves to further entrench the issue in a “quagmire of administrative process and serial litigation.” Additionally, as the case is now on the brink of resolution, the DOJ’s actions seek to prolong the legal uncertainty, making it harder for gun owners to defend their rights.
“We’ve already won a preliminary victory in the lower court, and the DOJ’s attempt to now stay the case is nothing but a delay tactic,” Erich Pratt, GOA senior vice president, senior Vice President of GOA, said in a news release. “A stay risks entrenching this case in an endless cycle of bureaucracy, and we’re not going to let that happen. The judge in our case issued a strong preliminary ruling, and it’s time to move forward—no more stalling.”
Pratt and others are calling for President Donald Trump’s new attorney general, Pam Bondi, to handle the situation.
“We encourage Attorney General Pam Bondi to put the right people in charge of handling these critical cases,” Pratt said. “DOJ bureaucrats are standing in the way of justice, and it’s time to make sure the right people are held accountable.”
Sam Paredes, speaking for the GOF, said career bureaucrats entrenched within the DOJ are causing the problem and need to be removed.
“While we attempted to resolve this behind the scenes, it’s clear that career bureaucrats in the DOJ have made the wrong decision,” Paredes said. “We’re calling out this misconduct, and we want to put the spotlight on those responsible for blocking the victory we’ve achieved. President Trump said he would ‘rip up’ this unlawful Rule, and so it’s inexplicable why the DOJ is now standing in the way of the court being able to do just that.”
Ultimately, the GOA response calls on the court to deny the DOJ’s motion for a stay.
“Because Defendants have not met their heavy burden showing this case should ‘depart from the beaten track,’ Plaintiffs ask the Court to deny Defendants’ motion,” the response concluded.
