The Firearms Policy Coalition filed a motion for preliminary injunction on September 1, 2026, asking a federal court in Louisiana to immediately block the state's ban on issuing concealed handgun permits to adults between 18 and 20 years old. The case is Pool v. Besson, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.

Louisiana is a constitutional carry state, which means adults 18 and older can carry a handgun without a permit under state law. The problem, according to FPC, is that the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act prohibits carrying within 1,000 feet of an elementary or secondary school for anyone without a state-issued license. Because Louisiana refuses to issue carry permits to adults under 21, 18-to-20-year-olds are locked out of that legal pathway — unable to carry lawfully near the schools, churches, parks, and public spaces that routinely fall inside a GFSZA buffer. The state also extends civil immunity protections to licensed carriers acting in justified self-defense, a protection that constitutional carry holders do not receive, compounding the practical burden on young adults who cannot qualify for a permit.

FPC filed the original lawsuit on July 22, 2026, on behalf of plaintiffs Ella Pool, Christian McDuffie, and Charles Matthews — all Louisiana residents between 18 and 20 who are legally eligible to possess firearms but are barred from obtaining a carry permit solely because of their age. Bearing Arms reported on September 4 that FPC's injunction motion argues Louisiana's age restriction violates the Second Amendment under the Supreme Court's Bruen framework, which requires the government to justify firearms regulations with historical analogues from the founding era. FPC contends that age-based carry bans targeting peaceable adults have no such tradition.

The preliminary injunction motion asks the court to act quickly, before the constitutional injury continues to accumulate for the young-adult plaintiffs. FPC and the Second Amendment Foundation have run a similar age-discrimination playbook in other circuits, and the Fifth Circuit — which covers Louisiana — has been receptive to Bruen-grounded Second Amendment claims in recent years. A ruling on the preliminary injunction motion is expected in the coming weeks.

If the court grants an injunction, Louisiana would be required to process carry permit applications from 18-to-20-year-old adults while the litigation continues. Gun rights groups are watching the case as part of a broader effort to dismantle age-based restrictions that treat adults who can legally possess and carry firearms as a special class denied the permits and protections available to older citizens.