Case Explained: CRAGHTTEN V. USA, ET AL.

Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Filed: 2026-06-17 Docket: 1:24-cv-00409-DKG The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s dismissal of Isaac Craghtten’s lawsuit challenging the federal requirement for non-citizens to provide an alien registration number on Form 4473 when purchasing a firearm. The court applied de novo review and held that the alien-number requirement does not violate the Second Amendment, Article III of the Jay Treaty, or 18 U.S.C. § 922(d). Regarding the Second Amendment, the court applied the standard from *United States v. Rahimi* and *B & L Prods., Inc. v. Newsom*, which asks whether a regulation “meaningfully impairs an individual’s ability to access firearms.” The panel concluded that collecting alien-related information does not meaningfully constrain the right because it merely ensures purchaser eligibility and facilitates background checks, similar to the prohibition on false statements upheld in *United States v. Manney*. Regarding the Jay Treaty claim, the court found that 8 U.S.C. § 1359 grants Canadian-born American Indians a right to pass the border without an alien identification number but does not exempt them from federal firearm purchase regulations. The requirement to provide the number on Form 4473 was deemed reconcilable with these immigration privileges as it does not interfere with the right to cross borders. Regarding 18 U.S.C. § 922(d), which prohibits selling firearms to aliens unlawfully in the United States, the court ruled that requiring an alien registration number is a reasonable mechanism for licensees to verify that non-citizen purchasers are lawfully present and thus eligible to possess firearms under federal law. The practical consequence of this decision is that the dismissal of Craghtten’s claims stands, leaving the Form 4473 alien-registration requirement in place for all non-citizens seeking to purchase firearms in the United States. Do It For The Case Law is a news reporting service. Nothing in this episode constitutes legal advice.