The United States Department of Justice has created a new Second Amendment Rights Section within its Civil Rights Division, a major structural shift that elevates gun rights within the department’s enforcement priorities. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the division, said the new Section reflects the department’s responsibility to treat the right to keep and bear arms as equal in importance to any other constitutional protection.
Harmeet Dhillon unveils a new federal unit for gun rights enforcement
According to internal DOJ plans submitted to Congress, the Second Amendment Rights Section is expected to begin operating around December 2025. The Section has been created to scrutinise and, when necessary, challenge state and local gun regulations that the DOJ believes may violate Supreme Court precedent or unduly restrict law-abiding citizens. While the DOJ has occasionally litigated in support of Second Amendment claims in the past, this marks the first time there will be a dedicated Section for gun rights within the Civil Rights Division.By placing the work inside the Civil Rights Division, the department is formally elevating firearm ownership to a right that warrants structured federal protection alongside voting rights, disability rights and religious liberty. Harmeet K. Dhillon, a conservative civil-rights litigator and founder of the Center for American Liberty, was nominated by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the Senate in April 2025 to lead the Civil Rights Division. Throughout 2025, she has repeatedly used the phrase “the Second Amendment is not a second-class right” in public statements, court filings and press remarks. Dhillon argues that recent Supreme Court rulings such as District of Columbia v. Heller and New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen make clear that states cannot impose burdensome restrictions on commonly used firearms or block law-abiding citizens from carrying them.She has framed the new Section as a necessary mechanism to ensure constitutional protections are applied uniformly across the country and to prevent states from undermining federal standards through excessive fees, prolonged permitting processes or broad prohibitions on weapons covered under current legal precedent.
How the new Second Amendment Rights Section will operate
Under the new structure, DOJ attorneys will evaluate state and local gun laws for potential constitutional conflicts. The Section will be authorised to file statements of interest, submit amicus briefs in key litigation or initiate civil rights actions on behalf of gun owners. This approach mirrors the department’s enforcement strategy in other areas such as voting rights, disability rights and religious freedoms.Supporters say the creation of the Section marks a historic shift, signalling that the federal government will treat gun ownership as a civil right requiring active oversight. They argue it will help protect vulnerable groups, including women and people with disabilities, who rely on lawful self-defence. Dhillon has emphasised that criminals are less likely to target a home protected by an armed citizen and that the right to bear arms serves as a tool for equalisation.
A move praised and criticised
Gun-rights advocates have welcomed the development, describing it as long overdue. They say states with restrictive regulations have often ignored Supreme Court precedent and that a dedicated DOJ Section will bring consistency and legal clarity. Critics, however, warn that expanding gun rights enforcement at the federal level may weaken state authority to regulate firearms and could further politicise the Civil Rights Division. They argue that aggressive federal intervention might complicate efforts to address gun violence in communities seeking tighter regulations.
A major shift in how the federal government treats gun rights
The establishment of the Second Amendment Rights Section represents the most significant institutional change to federal gun-rights enforcement in decades. While the political and legal implications will take time to unfold, the DOJ’s new approach makes one thing clear. Under Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, the United States government intends to treat the Second Amendment not as a secondary entitlement, but as a core civil right that must be actively defended. Go to Source
