LD2238 imposes a 72-hour waiting period for firearm purchases, meaning a seller cannot deliver a firearm to a buyer until three days after the purchase agreement. This waiting period runs alongside any required background checks.
The Maine State Senate passed LD2238 on April 17, 2024 by a vote of 18 to 17. We have assigned pluses to the nays because this bill is just another example of Maine disparaging the rights of law-abiding citizens by hindering, through warrantless inquiry and delay, their ability to freely purchase and receive a firearm—without the burden of providing probable cause or proof of criminal activity. Nevertheless, the Bill of Rights and the 14th Amendment prevent “any State” from depriving or denying “any person” of “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” Moreover, the Second Amendment guarantees that the unalienable “right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
