A federal appeals court on Wednesday dismissed a July ruling that said a federal law banning handgun sales to young adults under the age of 21 was unconstitutional. A panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond unanimously ruled the case moot because the plaintiff in the case, a woman from Virginia named Natalia Marshall, turned 21 before the court’s decision became official, and is now able to purchase a handgun legally from licensed firearms dealers. Although the 1968 Gun Control Act bars federally licensed dealers from selling handguns to people under age 21, they’re still allowed to sell long guns to those 18 and over. Exceptions to the age ban also exist for the limited purposes of employment, ranching, farming, target practice, or hunting. In July, the same three-judge panel had ruled that a law passed by Congress in 1968 that sets a minimum age of 21 for …