Red States Ask Supreme Court To End Maine’s Gun-Purchase Waiting Period

Twenty-five states led by Montana urged the Supreme Court to take a case challenging Maine’s 72-hour waiting period.

Attorneys for Andrea Beckwith initially filed their petition for the high court to hear the case on August 25, after the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit overturned a decision by United States District Judge Lance E. Walker of the District of New Mexico, a Trump appointee, in favor of Beckwith, an advocate for victims of domestic violence. In the brief filed Monday by Republican Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, the states argued that waiting periods were unconstitutional.

“If a person agreed to purchase a firearm on Monday, and also passed the required background check that day, she would be able to ‘keep’ (i.e., possess) the firearm the day of the purchase,” the states said. “But because of Section 2016, a person in Maine is unable to ‘keep’ the firearm, on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday.”

“Based on this simple hypothetical, it is clear that Section 2016 is a restriction,” the brief continues. “And even assuming there is a relevant distinction between direct and indirect restrictions on keeping arms, Section 2016’s restriction is direct. It is the but-for cause of persons being completely unable to exercise the right to keep arms for multiple days.”

Maine’s state Legislature enacted the waiting period following an October 2023 mass shooting in Lewiston by an Army reservist with a history of mental health issues. The waiting period took effect in 2024 after Democratic Gov. Janet Mills refused to veto the legislation, instead allowing it to become law without her signature.

The National Rifle Association (NRA) and Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) asked the high court to hear Beckwith v. Frey in a similar brief filed Sept. 21. While Maine declined to respond to Beckwith’s petition Thursday, there is a “circuit split” that makes it more likely the Supreme Court will elect to hear the case.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit struck down a waiting period on firearms purchases in August 2025 while overruling a decision in favor of New Mexico by Senior United States District Judge James O. Browning, a George W. Bush appointee.