Bruen Wins Again: Second Circuit Upholds Felon Gun Ban, Signals Crypto Regulation Playbook
**Second Circuit Shields Felon Firearm Ban from Bruen Challenge**
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals just upheld the federal ban on felons possessing guns, slapping down Ryan Buckley’s post-Bruen constitutional attack in a swift summary order. Buckley, convicted under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), argued the law violates the Second Amendment both on its face and as applied to him—but the court said prior rulings like Zherka v. Bondi lock it in as constitutional. While this guns case flies under crypto’s radar, it reinforces historical-tradition tests that could echo in battles over digital asset regs, where agencies lean on “longstanding” precedents to classify and control.
Buckley’s saga started with a guilty plea to felon-in-possession charges, but his deal let him appeal a lower court’s refusal to toss the indictment after the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen decision upended gun laws by demanding historical analogs for restrictions. He claimed § 922(g)(1) fails that test, stripping non-violent felons of rights without Founding-era parallels. The three-judge panel—Parker, Carney, and Robinson—rejected it outright, citing their fresh 2025 Zherka ruling that traces felon disarmament back to the Founding and post-14th Amendment eras, when lawmakers routinely barred “dangerous” classes from arms. Felons, they ruled, break the social contract, justifying blanket bans even for non-violent offenses. Buckley loses big—his 46-month sentence stands—while the government notches another win, cementing the statute’s staying power.
In plain terms, this isn’t rewriting the law; it’s doubling down that history trumps modern gripes. Bruen’s “text, history, and tradition” framework lets Congress disarm those deemed untrustworthy by conviction alone—no individualized threat needed—because lawmakers from 1791 onward did the same.
For crypto, the ripple is subtle but strategic: Bruen’s historical lens is infiltrating SEC v. CFTC turf wars, where enforcers cite “traditional” commodity or security definitions to snag tokens, stablecoins, and DeFi protocols. This ruling bolsters regulators’ playbooks—agencies can now more confidently invoke “historical practice” to classify crypto as securities or commodities without fresh tailoring, dialing up risk for exchanges like Coinbase facing Howey-test gauntlets. Decentralization feels the squeeze too; if felon-wide bans pass muster, broad DeFi restrictions or trader blacklists (think OFAC-style) gain legitimacy, spooking sentiment amid volatility. Traders betting on lighter touch post-Ripple or SAB 121 wins might hedge harder, eyeing Northeast corridors where Second Circuit precedent bites.
Buckley affirms regulators’ historical moats—crypto innovators, fortify your analog arsenals or face the ban hammer.
