The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear Missouri’s appeal to reinstate a Republican-backed law aimed at blocking enforcement of certain federal gun regulations. By declining to take the case, the justices allowed lower court rulings striking down the law to remain in effect.
Known as the Second Amendment Preservation Act, the 2021 law sought to prohibit Missouri state and local officials from enforcing federal firearms restrictions, claiming that several federal regulations violated the constitutional right to “keep and bear arms.” The measure was passed by Missouri’s Republican-controlled legislature and signed into law by then-Governor Mike Parson.
The U.S. Justice Department sued Missouri under President Joe Biden, arguing that the law violated the Supremacy Clause, which establishes that federal law overrides conflicting state statutes. U.S. District Judge Brian Wimes blocked enforcement of the law in 2023, a decision upheld by the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2024. The Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the appeal leaves those rulings intact.
Missouri filed its appeal with the Supreme Court in January 2025, shortly after Donald Trump returned to the presidency, an administration generally supportive of gun rights. Despite this, the Trump Justice Department recommended that the Supreme Court not take up the case, noting that while some parts of the law remain constitutionally questionable, review was unnecessary.
