The Supreme Court is poised to extend gun rights at the worst possible time – Alternet.org

Second Amendment

[ad_1]

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” —Second Amendment to the United States Constitution

As the deadly COVID-19 contagion sweeps across the country, gun sales are surging, spurred in many regions by panic buying and purchases by first-time firearm owners. Fearful and insecure Americans are taking advantage of weak and ineffective gun-control laws and stocking up, as President Trump might say, “like never before.”

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is poised to issue its first major Second Amendment opinion in more than a decade in a case that originated, fittingly, in New York City, now the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States. The case—New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. City of New York—has the potential to vastly extend the rights of gun owners, and not just in New York, but throughout the entire nation.

At issue is a New York City “rule” (the term the city uses for its local ordinances) that was adopted in 2001 to prohibit residents from transporting licensed handguns beyond municipal limits. The rule was challenged in a federal lawsuit filed in 2013 by the NRA’s New York affiliate and three individuals. A district court judge ruled in the city’s favor in 2015, as did the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in 2018. The Supreme Court, however, agreed to review the case at the NRA’s request in January 2019, and heard oral arguments in December.

The plaintiffs contend that the city’s handgun transportation ban should be declared unconstitutional because it conflicts with the Supreme Court’s landmark 2008 decision on the Second Amendment, District of Columbia v. Heller.

In Heller, the Supreme Court struck down a ban on handgun possession in the nation’s capital, ruling for the first time that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to gun ownership. Deeply controversial and hotly contested, Heller split the Supreme Court along strict ideological lines, and was resolved on the basis of a 5-4 vote of the justices. The late Justice Antonin Scalia’s majority opinion stood the prior judicial consensus on the Second Amendment on its head, rejecting the great weight of prior scholarship and earlier court opinions, including the Supreme Court’s 1939 decision in United States v. Miller, that had construed the amendment as protecting gun ownership only in connection with service in long-antiquated state militias.

Scalia’s opinion was met by a blistering dissent written by Justice John Paul Stevens, who retired from the bench in 2010 and passed away last year. Drawing on a wide array of historical sources, Stevens chided Scalia for ignoring the actual debates that took place during the founding era on the ratification of the Constitution and the drafting of the Second Amendment. Those debates, in Stevens’ view, demonstrated the amendment’s purpose was not to safeguard individual gun rights, but to guarantee the survival of the militias as a “collective right” of the citizenry as an alternative to the creation of a large federal standing army.

Stevens lost the battle of persuasion in Heller, and in 2010, in another 5-4 decision that also featured a Stevens dissent—McDonald v. Chicago—the Supreme Court extended Heller, holding that the individual right to keep and bear arms was incorporated by the 14th Amendment’s due process clause and hence was applicable to the states and local governments. The Second Amendment, as interpreted by Scalia, thus became the law of the land.

Although Scalia and Stevens are no longer with us, the ideological divisions they represented remain on the Supreme Court today. Indeed, when it comes to gun rights, the current court is even more conservative than it was in 2008. Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, both appointed by Trump, are outspoken proponents of Scalia’s vision of the Second Amendment. And the tribunal’s remaining conservatives—Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito—participated in Heller and joined Scalia’s majority opinion.

Still, Heller by no means precluded all measures of gun control. As the Second Circuit noted in its evaluation of the New York handgun transportation ban that is now before the court, Heller was technically limited to possession of guns in the home, and established no clear limits on legislation aimed at regulating gun rights outside of the home.

“Like most rights,” Scalia wrote in Heller, “the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited… [N]othing in our opinion should be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms.”

And in an enigmatic footnote to the above paragraph, Scalia added: “We identify these presumptively lawful regulatory measures only as examples; our list does not purport to be exhaustive.”

Adhering to Scalia’s reasoning, in the years following Hellerlower courts have upheld a broad range of state and local gun-control regulations, a dynamic that has prompted the NRA and other gun-lobby groups to urge the Supreme Court to take up another Second Amendment appeal to reaffirm the amendment’s importance and place stricter limits on gun control. They may have found the perfect test case in the New York transportation ban. Like Heller, the New York ban concerns an outright prohibition, which will be hard, if not impossible, to justify before the court’s conservative majority.

Realizing it would likely lose the case, New York City amended its transportation rule in June to permit residents to take their handguns to second homes, businesses or shooting ranges outside city limits. And in July, the city filed a formal motion with the Supreme Court, requesting that the case be dismissed as moot. The court denied the motion in October, setting the stage for another Second Amendment showdown.

In December’s oral arguments, the city again asked the court to moot the case. The city made no attempt to defend the transportation ban.

Unfortunately, given the city’s capitulation and the Supreme Court’s right-wing orientation, the only real remaining question is the scope of the NRA’s inevitable victory. Even if the court reconsiders the city’s request and enters a dismissal order, the NRA will walk away with a significant win, having forced the city to rescind one of the most stringent gun-control laws in the country. On the other hand, a decision on the merits on constitutional grounds in the NRA’s favor would reward the organization with an even bigger triumph, endangering gun-control laws everywhere.

A nation awash in firearms in the grip of the COVID-19 pandemic awaits the court’s decision, which is expected by the end of June.

Bill Blum is a retired judge and a lawyer in Los Angeles. He is a lecturer at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communication. He writes regularly on law and politics and is the author of three widely acclaimed legal thrillers: Prejudicial ErrorThe Last Appeal, and The Face of Justice.

This article was produced by the Independent Media Institute.


Enjoy this piece?

… then let us make a small request. AlterNet’s journalists work tirelessly to counter the traditional corporate media narrative. We’re here seven days a week, 365 days a year. And we’re proud to say that we’ve been bringing you the real, unfiltered news for 20 years—longer than any other progressive news site on the Internet.

It’s through the generosity of our supporters that we’re able to share with you all the underreported news you need to know. Independent journalism is increasingly imperiled; ads alone can’t pay our bills. AlterNet counts on readers like you to support our coverage. Did you enjoy content from David Cay Johnston, Common Dreams, Raw Story and Robert Reich? Opinion from Salon and Jim Hightower? Analysis by The Conversation? Then join the hundreds of readers who have supported AlterNet this year.

Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Help ensure AlterNet remains independent long into the future. Support progressive journalism with a one-time contribution to AlterNet, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click here to donate by check.

[ad_2]

Source link

Articles You May Like

Court panel reverses order affirming state gun law | News, Sports, Jobs
Ahead of State of State address, R.I. lawmakers debate path forward for assault weapons ban
Pam Bondi tells Senators she would review federal proposals mirroring Parkland law
Congressional Republicans Are Trying Again – RedState
NRA Says Federal Ban On Marijuana Amid State-Level Legalization Has Created ‘Confusing’ Legal Landscape For Gun Owners

128 Comments

  1. whoah this blog is wonderful i really like reading your articles. Keep up the great paintings! You realize, a lot of people are hunting round for this info, you could help them greatly.

  2. 28749 387987Wow, incredible weblog format! How lengthy have you been blogging for? you make running a blog glance straightforward. The full glance of your site is wonderful, as smartly the content material! 107124

  3. whoah this blog is wonderful i really like reading your articles. Keep up the great paintings! You realize, a lot of people are hunting round for this info, you could help them greatly.

  4. whoah this blog is wonderful i really like reading your articles. Keep up the great paintings! You realize, a lot of people are hunting round for this info, you could help them greatly.

  5. I have read your excellent post. This is a great job. I have enjoyed reading your post first time. I want to say thanks for this post. Thank you…

  6. I think this is an informative post and it is very useful and knowledgeable. therefore, I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this article.

  7. I would also motivate just about every person to save this web page for any favorite assistance to assist posted the appearance.

  8. Wonderful illustrated information. I thank you about that. No doubt it will be very useful for my future projects. Would like to see some other posts on the same subject!

  9. Wonderful blog post. This is absolute magic from you! I have never seen a more wonderful post than this one. You’ve really made my day today with this. I hope you keep this up!

  10. Right here is the right webpage for anyone who would like
    to find out about this topic. You understand so much its almost hard
    to argue with you (not that I actually will need to…HaHa).
    You certainly put a brand new spin on a subject that’s been discussed for many
    years. Excellent stuff, just great!

  11. This design is steller! You most certainly know how to keep a reader entertained.

    Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start
    my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Excellent job.
    I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how
    you presented it. Too cool!

  12. An outstanding share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a friend who was doing a little research on this.
    And he in fact ordered me breakfast simply because I stumbled upon it for him…

    lol. So let me reword this…. Thanks for the meal!!
    But yeah, thanx for spending time to talk about this subject here on your website.

  13. Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you
    knew of any widgets I could add to my blog that
    automatically tweet my newest twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping maybe
    you would have some experience with something like this.
    Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy
    reading your blog and I look forward to your new updates.

  14. hello!,I really like your writing very a lot!
    percentage we keep in touch extra about your article on AOL?
    I need a specialist on this space to resolve my problem. Maybe that is you!
    Looking forward to peer you.

  15. Hello, There’s no doubt that your website might be
    having web browser compatibility issues. Whenever I look at your web site in Safari, it looks fine however, when opening
    in IE, it’s got some overlapping issues. I just wanted to provide you with a quick
    heads up! Aside from that, wonderful blog!

  16. It’s a pity you don’t have a donate button! I’d definitely donate to this superb blog!
    I suppose for now i’ll settle for bookmarking
    and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to new updates and will talk about this blog with my
    Facebook group. Chat soon!

  17. Hey! I just wanted to ask if you ever have any issues with hackers?
    My last blog (wordpress) was hacked and I ended up losing a few months of hard work due
    to no data backup. Do you have any methods to prevent hackers?

  18. Hello there! I know this is kinda off topic however , I’d figured
    I’d ask. Would you be interested in trading links
    or maybe guest writing a blog article or vice-versa?

    My website discusses a lot of the same topics as yours and I think we could
    greatly benefit from each other. If you might be interested feel free to send me an e-mail.
    I look forward to hearing from you! Terrific blog by the way!

  19. Today, I went to the beach with my children. I found a sea
    shell and gave it to my 4 year old daughter and said “You can hear the ocean if you put this to your ear.” She placed the shell to her ear and screamed.

    There was a hermit crab inside and it pinched her ear.
    She never wants to go back! LoL I know this is entirely off topic
    but I had to tell someone!

  20. First of all I would like to say wonderful blog!
    I had a quick question in which I’d like to ask if you don’t mind.
    I was interested to know how you center yourself and clear your thoughts before writing.
    I have had trouble clearing my mind in getting my thoughts out.
    I truly do enjoy writing but it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes are usually lost
    simply just trying to figure out how to begin. Any ideas or tips?
    Kudos!

  21. Its such as you read my thoughts! You appear to grasp a lot about
    this, such as you wrote the ebook in it or something. I feel that you simply
    could do with some percent to force the message house a bit,
    however instead of that, that is wonderful blog. A great read.
    I will certainly be back.

  22. My brother suggested I might like this web
    site. He was totally right. This post actually made
    my day. You can not imagine simply how much time I had
    spent for this info! Thanks!

  23. Good day I am so thrilled I found your blog, I really found you by accident,
    while I was searching on Aol for something else, Anyways I am here
    now and would just like to say thanks a lot for a incredible
    post and a all round enjoyable blog (I also love the
    theme/design), I don’t have time to read through it all at the moment but I have bookmarked
    it and also added in your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will
    be back to read a great deal more, Please do keep up the awesome work.

  24. Oh my goodness! Incredible article dude! Thank you, However I am having troubles with your RSS.
    I don’t know the reason why I can’t subscribe to it.
    Is there anybody else having similar RSS problems? Anyone that knows the answer will you kindly
    respond? Thanks!!

  25. This design is spectacular! You certainly know how to keep a
    reader entertained. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost
    moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!)
    Great job. I really enjoyed what you had
    to say, and more than that, how you presented it.
    Too cool!

  26. I like the helpful information you provide in your articles.

    I’ll bookmark your blog and check again here regularly.
    I’m quite certain I will learn many new stuff right here!
    Good luck for the next!

  27. I do not know whether it’s just me or if everyone else encountering issues with your site.
    It appears as though some of the text in your content are running off
    the screen. Can somebody else please comment and let me know if
    this is happening to them too? This may be a issue with my web browser because I’ve had this happen previously.
    Thanks

  28. Woah! I’m really loving the template/theme of this website.
    It’s simple, yet effective. A lot of times it’s challenging to get that “perfect balance” between user friendliness and
    visual appearance. I must say that you’ve done a amazing job
    with this. Additionally, the blog loads super fast for me on Chrome.
    Superb Blog!

  29. Wow that was strange. I just wrote an extremely long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up.
    Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Regardless, just wanted to say great blog!

  30. Hi there, just became aware of your blog through Google, and found that it is really informative.

    I’m going to watch out for brussels. I’ll be grateful if
    you continue this in future. Numerous people will be benefited from your writing.
    Cheers!

  31. Great article! This is the type of info that are supposed to be shared across the net.
    Shame on the seek engines for no longer positioning this post upper!
    Come on over and consult with my website . Thanks
    =)

  32. First off I want to say wonderful blog! I had a quick question in which I’d
    like to ask if you don’t mind. I was interested to know how you center yourself and clear your mind prior to writing.
    I’ve had a hard time clearing my thoughts in getting my ideas out
    there. I truly do enjoy writing however it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes are generally lost simply just trying
    to figure out how to begin. Any suggestions or tips? Kudos!

  33. This design is wicked! You obviously know how to keep a reader
    entertained. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost
    moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!)
    Excellent job. I really loved what you had to
    say, and more than that, how you presented it.
    Too cool!

  34. Does your blog have a contact page? I’m having trouble locating it
    but, I’d like to shoot you an email. I’ve got some creative ideas for your blog
    you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great site and I
    look forward to seeing it grow over time.

  35. Hey I am so glad I found your weblog, I really found you by mistake,
    while I was browsing on Yahoo for something else, Nonetheless I
    am here now and would just like to say thank you for a fantastic
    post and a all round entertaining blog (I also love the theme/design), I
    don’t have time to read it all at the moment but I
    have bookmarked it and also added your RSS feeds, so when I have time I
    will be back to read a lot more, Please do keep up the awesome job.

  36. Hey! Quick question that’s totally off topic.
    Do you know how to make your site mobile friendly?
    My weblog looks weird when viewing from my apple iphone.
    I’m trying to find a theme or plugin that might
    be able to fix this issue. If you have any
    suggestions, please share. Thank you!

  37. Hey there, I think your blog might be having browser compatibility issues.

    When I look at your blog in Firefox, it looks
    fine but when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping.
    I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, amazing blog!

  38. I was suggested this website by my cousin. I am not sure whether this post is written by him as no one else know such detailed about my difficulty.

    You are wonderful! Thanks!

  39. I think this is one of the most significant information for me.
    And i’m glad reading your article. But should remark on some general things, The site style is wonderful,
    the articles is really excellent : D. Good job, cheers

  40. Excellent article. Keep posting such kind of info on your site.
    Im really impressed by it.
    Hello there, You have performed an excellent job.
    I’ll certainly digg it and individually suggest to my friends.
    I am confident they will be benefited from
    this web site.

  41. Hello there, There’s no doubt that your site could
    be having internet browser compatibility problems. When I
    take a look at your blog in Safari, it looks fine
    however when opening in Internet Explorer, it’s got some overlapping issues.
    I simply wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other than that,
    great site!

  42. obviously like your website however you need to check the spelling on several of your posts.

    Several of them are rife with spelling problems and
    I to find it very bothersome to tell the reality then again I will definitely
    come back again.

  43. Hello very cool website!! Man .. Beautiful .. Amazing ..
    I will bookmark your web site and take the feeds additionally?
    I am happy to search out numerous helpful info right here in the submit, we
    want work out extra techniques on this regard, thank you for
    sharing. . . . . .

  44. I’m not sure exactly why but this website is loading extremely slow for me.

    Is anyone else having this problem or is it a issue on my end?
    I’ll check back later on and see if the problem still exists.

  45. I am curious to find out what blog system you happen to be using?
    I’m experiencing some small security problems with my latest website and I would
    like to find something more safeguarded.

    Do you have any solutions?

  46. Bahis dünyasında en yüksek bonusları sunan Betcio, kullanıcıların kazançlarını artırmak için mükemmel bir fırsat sunuyor. Eğlencenin tadını çıkarın!

  47. Pendik Escort Kurtköy Escort keyifli anlar yaşamak isteyenler için ideal seçenekler sunuyor. Pendik escort bayanlar arasından seçim yaparak, farklı deneyimler keşfedebilirsiniz.

  48. For many individuals, Car Insurance in Las Vegas Nevada is a required expenditure for assurance while
    driving. Matching up quotes can assist you locate the most effective fees for
    Car Insurance in Las Vegas Nevada. Some insurance companies
    supply discounts permanently driving reports on Car Insurance
    in Las Vegas Nevada. See to it to ask them about all offered discount rates
    when purchasing Car Insurance in Las Vegas Nevada.

  49. Good to become visiting your weblog again, it has been months for me. Nicely this article that i’ve been waited for so long. I will need this post to total my assignment in the college, and it has exact same topic together with your write-up. Thanks, good share.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *