Ninth Circuit Upholds Silencer Restrictions: A Blow to Second Amendment Rights and Hearing Safety

On June 3, 2026, a significant decision emerged from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that sent ripples through the firearms community. In the case of *United States v. DeBorba*, the court rejected a facial challenge to the National Firearms Act (NFA), specifically ruling that firearm silencers and suppressors are mere accessories, not “arms” protected by the clear text of the Second Amendment. For law-abiding gun owners, this ruling is a deeply disappointing setback—and a stark reminder of the lengths to which activist courts will go to twist definitions in order to keep burdensome, outdated restrictions firmly in place.

By reducing a vital piece of safety equipment to a “mere accessory,” the Ninth Circuit didn’t just uphold a bad law; it functionally compromised the health and rights of millions of responsible shooters. Suppressors are not Hollywood gimmicks; they are essential safety tools designed to prevent permanent physical harm.

Here is why the DeBorba decision gets the science and the Constitution entirely wrong—and why the fight to deregulate these safety devices is more urgent than ever.

Why Suppressors are Fundamental to the Second Amendment

The Ninth Circuit’s logic hinges on a dangerous premise: that if a device doesn’t literally fire a projectile itself, it isn’t protected by the Constitution. This narrow interpretation completely ignores how firearms actually operate in the real world.

To safely and effectively exercise the right to bear arms, a shooter needs functional equipment. A suppressor is no more an “unprotected accessory” than a firearm’s sights, stocks, or magazines.

• Protecting Hearing is Vital to Safety: A standard 9mm or .223 rifle shot blasts at roughly 150 to 165 decibels (dB)—well past the 140 dB threshold where immediate, irreversible hearing damage occurs. Suppressors drop that noise by 20 to 35 dB, bringing the sound down to a safer, manageable level.

• Enhancing Situational Awareness: In a high-stress home defense scenario, firing an unsuppressed weapon indoors can instantly deafen and disorient the homeowner, putting them at a severe disadvantage. Suppressors protect the defender’s ability to hear commands, family members, or incoming threats.

• The Bruen Reality Check: Under the Supreme Court’s historical test, the government must prove that banning or heavily taxing safety mufflers aligns with the original public understanding of the Second Amendment in 1791. Historically, the Founders never restricted safety equipment that made firearms more controlled or less damaging to the user’s health.

The Absurdity of NFA Bureaucracy

Because the Ninth Circuit chose to protect the status quo, suppressors remain locked behind the archaic wall of the 1934 National Firearms Act. This means law-abiding citizens who simply want to protect their hearing are treated with the same federal suspicion as someone buying a military-grade explosive.

The Regulatory Burden: To buy a basic safety device, an American citizen must pay a mandatory $200 federal tax stamp, submit photos and fingerprints to the government, register their device in a federal database, and wait months for bureaucratic approval.

This isn’t about public safety; it’s a financial and administrative penalty on responsible gun ownership. In many European nations—where gun laws are famously strict—suppressors are completely unregulated or actively mandated at shooting ranges to prevent noise pollution and protect public health. Yet, in America, gun owners face a felony charge for attaching a muffler to their rifle without federal permission.

The Next Steps for Gun Rights Advocates

The DeBorba ruling is a frustrating loss, but it highlights exactly where the firearms community needs to focus its energy. Activist courts will continue to chip away at our rights if we allow them to arbitrarily redefine what constitutes an “arm.”

To push back against this erosion, Second Amendment advocates must act:

1. Support Legal Appeals: This case is prime for a Supreme Court challenge. We must back advocacy groups pushing to get the definition of “arms” corrected at the highest level.

2. Push for Legislative Deregulation: True relief will come from Congress through measures like the Hearing Protection Act, which would remove suppressors from the NFA entirely and treat them like ordinary firearms.

3. Educate the Public: Demystify suppressors. Invite new shooters to the range, demonstrate how they work, and shift the narrative from Hollywood myth to practical firearm safety.

Protecting your hearing shouldn’t require a federal investigation and a government tax. The fight for the Second Amendment includes every tool necessary to exercise that right safely, confidently, and without bureaucratic overreach.