Post Office Gun Ban Dead

The Justice Department has stopped defending the federal ban on carrying firearms at post offices, letting a permanent injunction stand rather than fight it further.

Driving the news: On July 16, DOJ filed a 41-word unopposed motion to voluntarily dismiss its appeal in Firearms Policy Coalition v. Blanche at the Fifth Circuit. No explanation. No concession. Just a request to walk away, with each side covering its own costs.

Catch up quick:

• SAF, FPC, and two individual plaintiffs sued in June 2024, challenging the federal prohibition on firearms inside federal facilities (18 U.S.C. § 930(a)) and the postal-property carry ban (39 C.F.R. § 232.1(l))
• Chief U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor granted summary judgment to the plaintiffs in September 2025, entering a permanent injunction
• The government appealed, then tried to gut the injunction's scope — both efforts failed
• The injunction now covers named plaintiffs and all current and future SAF and FPC members

"We now have finality and clarity that the hard-fought injunction we secured on behalf of our members, striking down the post office carry ban is the permanent outcome of the case." — Bill Sack, SAF Senior Director of Legal Operations

The historical record wasn't close. The first federal law restricting guns inside government buildings didn't appear until 1964. The Postal Service's specific property ban came in 1972 — roughly 200 years after ratification. Meanwhile, during the mail-train robbery wave of the 1920s, the postmaster general issued pistols to railway mail clerks. The government's own history undercut its sensitive-place argument before the lawyers opened their mouths.

Between the lines: The timing tells the real story. In January, DOJ asked the Fifth Circuit to pause the appeal pending the Supreme Court's decision in Wolford v. Lopez. The Fifth Circuit said no. The Supreme Court decided Wolford on June 25, reaffirming that carry restrictions must survive Bruen's historical tradition test. Three weeks later, DOJ moved to dismiss. The motion doesn't mention Wolford. It doesn't need to.

What gun owners should know: This injunction is not a universal green light.

• It protects SAF and FPC members (present and future) at ordinary post offices
• It does not cover post offices on military bases, inside federal buildings with additional restricted functions, or similarly secured facilities
• The underlying federal statutes remain on the books — this ruling doesn't erase them for non-members
• State and local carry laws still apply

The bottom line: An ordinary post office is where you mail a package or pick up a passport application — not a courthouse or a military installation. The government spent two years arguing otherwise and lost. Join SAF or FPC if you want the injunction's protection to apply to you.