On August 21, 2026, U.S. District Judge George O’Toole rejected the challenge in Escher v. Noble. The judge ruled that the plaintiffs lacked standing to contest three of four challenged provisions, leaving Massachusetts’ minimum age of 21 for obtaining a License to Carry to be decided on the merits.

Applying the Supreme Court’s Bruen historical-tradition test, Judge O’Toole concluded that founding-era laws and the age of majority supported firearm restrictions for people under 21. He found that the restriction fit within that historical principle and rejected the argument that it reduced the Second Amendment to a second-class right.

“When the Bill of Rights was established, what precedence was in place that set age limits on possessing handguns?” said Jim Wallace Executive Director of GOAL. “Ever since the historic civil rights decision Bruen was handed down from the Supreme Court, some courts have taken it upon themselves to reinvent history.”



The ruling leaves the Commonwealth’s restrictions in place, but it is a federal district court decision—not the final word. GOAL will be working with the other groups to decide on the next course on this effort.