DOJ Just Sued Minnesota Over Its 30-Day Permit-to-Purchase Wait

The Office of Public Affairs dated the release September 24, 2026: Justice Department Sues Minnesota, St. Paul, and Minneapolis Over Firearm Purchase Waiting Period, Press Release Number 26-2002. Plaintiff: the United States. Defendants named in the release: the State of Minnesota, the City of Minneapolis, and the City of St. Paul. The complaint is posted at justice.gov/crt/media/1462611/dl. The Civil Rights Division’s Second Amendment Section is running it under the Police Pattern or Practice Act, 34 U.S.C. § 12601. The ask, as CBS Minnesota reported, is a declaration and a permanent injunction stopping enforcement of the challenged pieces.

The scheme is two clocks. Minnesota already runs NICS. Then, for a handgun or a regulated rifle, state law still sits on the transfer. For Minnesotans who do not intend to carry in public, DOJ says that extra wait is thirty days. The lawsuit also hits the city queues. “Waiting periods for approvals from chiefs of police in St. Paul and Minneapolis commonly exceed 30 days, with some citizens waiting nearly 60 days for approval,” CBS Minnesota wrote from the complaint. The same report: over 93 percent of Minnesota residents do not have a carry permit, so people “who merely wish to defend their home” get the annual wait. A letter last week was not a case. This is a case.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon, Civil Rights Division: “The Supreme Court held that the home is where the need for defense of self, family, and property is most acute. When a person needs to defend their home, they need to defend it now, not thirty to sixty days from now.” And: “Law-abiding citizens do not need government permission to purchase a firearm, and forcing a citizen who has already passed a background check to wait up to sixty days to obtain a firearm is intolerable under the Constitution.” U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen for the District of Minnesota: “We are committed to protecting Minnesotans’ right to purchase firearms and we will not tolerate procedures that are wielded in a way that impairs that right.” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, to CBS Minnesota: “Given the recent, shocking, and tragic instances of gun violence in Minnesota, it is astonishing that the Trump administration is devoting its resources to attacking Minnesota’s police departments and the state’s common-sense background check laws.” “It should disturb every single Minnesotan that Donald Trump’s Department of Justice is trying to make Minnesota less safe.” Democratic Sen. Ron Latz told WCCO he expected challenges, not from the United States. A complaint is not a ruling. The 30-day statute is still the statute until a judge or the legislature moves it.