Appeals court blocks New Mexico's 7-day waiting period for gun purchases, saying it violates 2nd Amendment

A federal appeals court ruled New Mexico's gun waiting period law likely violated the Second Amendment, putting the measure on hold pending a legal challenge.

The waiting period went into effect in May of last year and included violators being subject to a misdemeanor, but it does have an exception for concealed permit holders. Democrats had enacted the measure in an effort to allow for more time for federal background checks on gun buyers to be completed.

"Cooling-off periods do not fit into any historically grounded exceptions to the right to keep and bear arms, and burden conduct within the Second Amendment’s scope," Judge Timothy Tymkovich wrote for the majority. "We conclude that New Mexico's Waiting Period Act is likely an unconstitutional burden on the Second Amendment rights of its citizens."