Texas drops fight to prevent 18- to 20-year-olds from carrying handguns in public

Hundreds of handguns and rifles for sale at McBride’s Gun’s in Central Austin in April. (Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune)

Texas will no longer fight to ban 18- to 20-year-olds from carrying handguns in public. A judge ruled earlier this year that a state law banning the practice was unconstitutional, and Texas initially filed a notice that it would appeal. But Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw withdrew the appeal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this week.

U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman’s ruling was the first major decision about Texas gun laws since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that the Second Amendment protected individuals who carry weapons for self-defense.