The National Rifle Association is back in the news. This time, the big takeaway is that the group may finally be on the other side of their marathon legal fight.
While the final order in the NRA’s civil case came last month, we now have news the law firm behind the group’s legal strategy over the past six years is on its way out. In a members’ piece, I look at the NRA’s new era, the opportunities it brings, and the challenges it faces.
The gun industry got bad news again this week as background checks indicated December sales were down, and so were sales for all of 2024. Marijuana users got good news, though, as the Fifth Circuit reaffirmed its decision to toss gun charges against a Texas man. However, gun content creators and businesses were left without answers as Facebook and Instagram refused to say whether they plan to change their firearms policy as part of a new effort to loosen their moderation practices.
Plus, the head of a new charity working to talk down mass shooters joins the podcast. Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman also takes a look forward at what to look for on gun policy in 2025. And we have a bunch of other stories down in the links!
NRA, Controversial Law Firm Part Ways After Six Years
By Stephen Gutowski
The partnership between the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the architect of its legal strategy for the last half-decade is now ending.
Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors announced late last month it will no longer represent the NRA going forward. The firm and its namesake, William Brewer, have been instrumental in direction-defining decisions the gun-rights group has made since its corruption scandal broke into public sight in 2018. Those decisions resulted in the NRA splitting from its top contractor, filing for bankruptcy, wiping out its top leadership–including Wayne LaPierre, and being found liable by a New York jury for failing to protect whistle-blowers during a years-long civil trial.
However, as Brewer noted, they also secured a unanimous victory at the Supreme Court and prevented the group’s total dissolution or even the appointment of a government overseer.
Analysis: The NRA’s Opportunity for a Fresh Start [Member Exclusive]
By Stephen Gutowski
After over half a decade, the National Rifle Association’s corruption scandal appears to be at an end.
Just over a year ago, longtime leader Wayne LaPierre, who was at the center of that scandal, resigned. Last month, the judge in the group’s civil trial issued his final order cementing a series of reforms while leaving the group free of government monitoring. Now, the law firm that took the NRA through that trial and inspired a lot of internal dissent has announced it is moving on.
That provides the nation’s largest gun-rights group the chance to begin a new era.
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Gun Sales Fell Again in December, Down for the Whole Year
By Stephen Gutowski
Background checks associated with gun sales fell by 7.5 percent year-over-year in December and 3.5 percent for 2024.
Those are the findings of the latest analysis of the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) numbers by the firearms industry’s trade association. The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) reported the system performed 1.6 million sales-related checks in December and 15.2 million for all of 2024.
That puts December and 2024 total sales down below some pre-pandemic sales levels.
Fifth Circuit Reaffirms Weed Smoker’s Gun Rights
By Jake Fogleman
Prompted by the Supreme Court to try again, the Fifth Circuit reiterated its stance on the federal gun ban for marijuana users on Monday.
A unanimous panel once again tossed Patrick Darnell Daniels’ felony conviction for being in possession of firearms and “marihuana cigarette butts” (SIC) during a routine traffic stop. It found that the federal gun ban for illegal drug users cannot be constitutionally enforced against an occasional smoker who wasn’t shown to be high at the time of his arrest.
“Daniels’s § 922(g)(3) conviction is inconsistent with our ‘history and tradition’ of gun regulation,” Judge Jerry E. Smith wrote in US v. Daniels. “We do not invalidate the statute in all its applications, nor do we decide that § 922(g)(3) could never cover the conduct of which Daniels stands accused. But applications of § 922(g)(3) must accord with our nation’s history of firearm regulations, and disarming individuals solely for their prior, occasional, or habitual marihuana use does not.”
Click here to continue reading.
Facebook, Instagram Won’t Say if Moderation Changes Impact Gun Content
By Jake Fogleman
The company overseeing some of the world’s largest social media platforms just vowed to stop cracking down on controversial and politically tinged content. Gun enthusiasts will have to wait and see how that affects them.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp, and Threads, unveiled a series of sweeping changes to its content moderation practices Tuesday in what its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, said is a bid to “get back to its roots around free expression.” The company announced an end to its third party fact-checking program and a plan to reduce speech restrictions on contentious political topics “like immigration, gender identity, and gender.” Left unmentioned in the announcement, however, was how lawful firearms content would be impacted.
Podcast: The Charity Hoping to Talk Down Mass Shooters
By Stephen Gutowski
This week, we’re talking to the director of a promising new program designed to prevent acts of mass violence.
Jordan Estrada is the founder and director of Let’s Talk to Them. His group takes the latest research on mass shooters, much of which we’ve talked about on the show before, and tries to put its lessons into practice. The innovative project, which just received its IRS non-profit status, attempts to find people who are considering committing a mass shooting or other act of violence and pull them out of their downward spiral.
You can listen to the show on your favorite podcasting app or by clicking here. Video of the episode is available on our YouTube Channel.
Analysis: A Look Ahead to 2025 on Guns [Member Exclusive]
By Jake Fogleman
When it came to gun politics, 2024 came and went with more of a whimper than a bang.
Yet a relatively quiet 2024 does not necessarily presage the same for 2025. November’s election results and the ongoing torrent of Second Amendment lawsuits working their way through the federal court system offer plenty of potential for landscape-shifting changes to gun politics and policy.
Here’s a look at some of the major gun-related storylines to follow in the new year.
If you’re a Reload Member, click here to read the rest. If not, buy a membership for exclusive access to this and hundreds of other stories!
Outside The Reload
What the ATF Does—and What It Doesn’t Do | The Dispatch | By Kevin D. Williamson
House GOP introduces national concealed carry reciprocity bill | Fox News | By Elizabeth Elkind
Gun-control groups prepare for second Trump term | The Guardian | By Joan E Greve
That’s it for this week in guns.
I’ll see you all next week.
Thanks,
Stephen Gutowski
Founder
The Reload
