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March 18, 2008
SCOTUS: 'Americans Have The Right To Own Guns'
Topics: Supreme Court
It took a longer than usual session, but a majority of justices apparently agree that Americans have a "right to keep and bear arms" that goes beyond the amendment's reference to service in a militia.
IMHO (I'm not a lawyer), the majority made the right (no pun intended) decision and one that rejects a revisionist interpretation of the Constitution - albeit it's likely to have significant reverberations with the Left. However, given the decision and the comments of the judges, I,m not so sure that the D.C. handgun ban is not going to stand.
As Ilya Somin notes at The Volokh Conspiracy, judicial recognition of an individual constitutional right to bear arms, doesn't necessarily mean that the right will get any effective protection. Somin suggests that the Court might recognize the existence of the right, but defer to the government in defining its scope, thereby effectively leaving the right to the tender mercies of the very officials whom constitutional rights are intended to protect against.
Posted by Richard at March 18, 2008 5:40 PM
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