Supreme Court sitting on several key Second Amendment cases

Published April 25, 2026 7:00am ET



The Supreme Court has yet to decide on whether to take up a litany of gun cases, ranging from challenges of “assault weapons” bans to gun rights for 18-to 20-year-olds, as the justices sift through petitions for its next term.

In his 2022 majority opinion in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, Justice Clarence Thomas reiterated the high court’s 2010 pronouncement that “the constitutional right to bear arms in public for self-defense is not a second-class right, subject to an entirely different body of rules than the other Bill of Rights guarantees.” As the Supreme Court considers various gun petitions, advocates say there are a variety of Second Amendment issues that the high court must resolve to maintain the constitutionally protected right to bear arms.

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