The right to bear arms, protected by the Second Amendment, is an individual constitutional right to own and carry firearms for lawful purposes, with self-defense at its core. It applies against federal, state, and local governments. It is not unlimited: federal law bars certain people from possessing guns, places specific weapons under a registration regime, restricts where firearms can be carried, and leaves the rules for actually using a firearm in self-defense to state law. What follows is what the right covers, where it ends, and the rules that fill the space in between.
What the Right Covers Today
For most of American history, courts argued over whether the Second Amendment protected an individual right or only a collective right tied to militia service. The Supreme Court resolved that in 2008 in District of Columbia v. Heller, holding that the amendment protects an individual right to possess firearms for traditionally lawful purposes, especially self-defense in the home, with no militia connection required. Washington, D.C.’s handgun ban fell with the ruling.1Justia. District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008)
Two years later, McDonald v. City of Chicago extended that rule to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. After McDonald, no level of government — federal, state, or local — can impose a blanket ban on handgun possession for self-defense.2Justia. McDonald v. City of Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010)
How Courts Judge Gun Laws After Bruen
In 2022, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen changed the test courts use to evaluate firearm regulations. Judges no longer weigh public-safety benefits against the burden on the right. Instead, the government must show that a challenged law is consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation. If no historical analogue supports a restriction, it is presumptively unconstitutional. The decision struck down New York’s “proper cause” rule, which had let officials deny concealed-carry permits to applicants who could not demonstrate a special need.3Justia. New York State Rifle and Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen4Congress.gov. Amdt2.6 Bruen and Concealed-Carry Licenses
In 2024, United States v. Rahimi softened the historical inquiry. A modern law does not need a “dead ringer” or “historical twin” from the founding era; it only needs to be “relevantly similar” to historical restrictions in why and how it burdens the right. Rahimi upheld the federal law disarming people under domestic-violence restraining orders, pointing to founding-era surety and “going armed” laws as the relevant tradition.5Justia. United States v. Rahimi, 602 U.S. ___ (2024)
Lower courts are now applying this framework to magazine-capacity limits, age restrictions, and other state and federal rules. Outcomes vary by how well the government can tie a modern law to an accepted historical pattern.
Who Cannot Legally Own a Firearm
Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g), several categories of people are prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition anywhere in the United States:6Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons
- Anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, whether or not they served that long.
- Anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.
- Anyone subject to a qualifying restraining order protecting an intimate partner or that partner’s child.
- Anyone who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance. Marijuana counts, even in states that have legalized it, because it remains illegal under federal law.
- Anyone formally adjudicated as mentally defective or involuntarily committed to a mental institution.
- Fugitives from justice with an active felony or misdemeanor warrant.
- Anyone discharged from the military under dishonorable conditions.
- Former U.S. citizens who have formally renounced their citizenship.
Possession by a prohibited person carries up to 15 years in federal prison. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act raised that ceiling from 10 years in 2022.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties
Getting Rights Restored
Federal law technically allows a prohibited person to petition the Attorney General for relief under 18 U.S.C. § 925(c). The petitioner has to show they are unlikely to endanger public safety and that restoration would not be contrary to the public interest.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 925 – Exceptions; Relief From Disabilities In practice, this door has been closed since 1992: Congress bars the Department of Justice from spending money to process these petitions. State courts can sometimes restore rights for state convictions, but those processes vary widely and do not independently lift federal prohibitions.
Buying a Gun From a Dealer
Every firearm sale through a licensed dealer runs through ATF Form 4473. The buyer answers eligibility questions covering each prohibited category. Lying on the form is itself a federal crime.9Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Firearms Transaction Record
The dealer then runs the buyer through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Most results come back in minutes. The FBI has up to three business days to return a result, and if no denial has been issued in that window, the dealer may proceed with the sale.10Federal Bureau of Investigation. About NICS
Private sales between people who are not licensed dealers are a different story. Federal law does not require a background check for them, though a growing number of states do. Regardless of state rules, selling to someone you know or have reason to believe is a prohibited person is a federal crime on its own.
Straw Purchases
Buying a gun for someone who cannot legally buy one themselves is a straw purchase, a separate federal offense under 18 U.S.C. § 932 created by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. The penalty is up to 15 years. If the buyer knows or has reason to believe the firearm will be used in a felony, a terrorist act, or drug trafficking, the maximum rises to 25 years.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 932 – Straw Purchasing of Firearms
Weapons That Require Federal Registration
The right to bear arms does not cover every type of weapon. Heller described “dangerous and unusual weapons” as outside constitutional protection, building on the Court’s earlier ruling in United States v. Miller.12Justia. United States v. Miller, 307 U.S. 174 (1939)
The National Firearms Act of 1934 puts specific weapon types under a registration and background-check regime: machine guns, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, silencers, and destructive devices like grenades. Each item has to be registered in a federal database before it can be legally owned.13Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. National Firearms Act
Starting January 1, 2026, under Public Law 119-21, the $200 excise tax on making or transferring most NFA items dropped to $0. Machine guns and destructive devices still carry the $200 tax. Silencers and short-barreled rifles no longer do. Registration and background checks still apply across the board.14Federal Register. Changes to National Firearms Act Tax Remittance Provisions
Possessing an unregistered NFA weapon is a federal felony carrying up to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5871 – Penalties
Carrying a Firearm in Public
Bruen rewrote the public-carry landscape. Before 2022, several states ran “may-issue” systems where officials could deny a concealed-carry permit if the applicant could not show a special need. Those systems are gone. States can still require permits, but the criteria have to be objective: age minimums, background checks, training, fees.4Congress.gov. Amdt2.6 Bruen and Concealed-Carry Licenses
The rules you actually face depend on where you are. Some states now allow permitless carry, letting any eligible person carry concealed without a license. Others keep shall-issue permit systems with training and fee requirements. Permit fees run from under $50 to several hundred dollars. Some states impose waiting periods on purchases. A permit from one state does not necessarily carry over to another, so check the law of any state you plan to carry in before you cross the border.
Where Firearms Are Prohibited
A valid right to carry still ends at the door of certain locations. Heller and Bruen both affirmed that governments may prohibit firearms in “sensitive places,” with courthouses, legislative buildings, and polling places as the standard examples.3Justia. New York State Rifle and Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen
Federal law adds a major restricted zone through the Gun-Free School Zones Act, 18 U.S.C. § 922(q). It prohibits possessing a firearm on school grounds or within 1,000 feet of them. Narrow exceptions apply to firearms on private property not part of the school, firearms carried by someone with a state-issued license where the state verifies eligibility before issuing, and unloaded firearms stored in a locked container.16United States Department of Justice. Quick Reference to Federal Firearms Laws A violation carries up to five years.
The outer limits of “sensitive places” are being fought over right now. After Bruen, several states designated broad categories such as public parks, public transit, and Times Square as sensitive places. Courts have split on whether those designations have enough historical backing. Expect more movement here.
Traveling With a Gun Across State Lines
Because state gun laws vary so sharply, travel creates real legal risk. Federal law offers a limited safe harbor under 18 U.S.C. § 926A: if you may lawfully possess the firearm at the start and end of your trip, you may transport it through stricter states, provided it is unloaded and neither the firearm nor the ammunition is readily accessible from the passenger compartment. In a vehicle without a separate trunk, the gun has to be in a locked container other than the glove box or center console.17Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 926A – Interstate Transportation of Firearms
The safe harbor covers transportation, not extended stops. Some jurisdictions argue that stopping for anything beyond fuel, food, or sleep removes the protection, and travelers have been arrested in states like New York and New Jersey while technically in transit. Fighting the charges after the fact is expensive even when they are eventually dropped.
Flying has its own rules. The TSA requires any firearm in checked luggage to be unloaded, locked in a hard-sided case, and declared to the airline at the ticket counter. A gun counts as loaded if a live round is anywhere in the chamber, cylinder, or an inserted magazine. Airlines can add their own fees and restrictions on top of that.18Transportation Security Administration. Transporting Firearms and Ammunition
Owning a Gun and Using One Are Different Questions
The Supreme Court calls self-defense the “central component” of the Second Amendment right. That protects your ability to own and carry. It does not decide when you may actually fire.
Use of force is almost entirely a matter of state criminal law. The general rule across jurisdictions is that lethal force requires an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm and a proportional response. A property dispute or a verbal argument will not qualify. Some states impose a duty to retreat before using deadly force outside the home. Others follow “stand your ground” laws that remove that duty. The right to own the gun is federal and constitutional. The rules for pulling the trigger are state law, and they are unforgiving when you get them wrong.