United States v. Comeaux: Silencers as Second Amendment Arms

In the case of United States v. Comeaux, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals officially determined that firearm silencers qualify as "Arms" protected by the Second Amendment. The court reasoned that these devices facilitate armed self-defense by making firearms safer and more effective for lawful use. Despite this landmark classification, the court upheld the defendant’s conviction for possessing unregistered silencers under the National Firearms Act. This decision relied on the rule of orderliness, citing a previous ruling that presumes registration requirements are constitutional unless they are shown to be abusive or exorbitant. A concurring opinion agreed with the classification of silencers as protected arms but argued that the current legal framework relies too heavily on judicial shorthand rather than a rigorous historical analysis.