Second Amendment & the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
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.
The Second Amendment protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms for defense of life and liberty.
In U.S. v. Cruikshank (1876), Presser v. Illinois (1886), Miller v. Texas (1894) and U.S. v. Miller (1939), the Supreme Court recognized that the amendment protects an individual right. It has never taken a different view. However, in Salina v. Blaksley (1905), the Kansas Supreme Court invented the idea that the amendment instead protected a “right” of a person to keep and bear arms only while serving in a state militia, and in U.S. v. Tot (1942), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit advanced the idea that the amendment protects the “right” of a state to have a militia.
In District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), the Supreme Court heard its first case specifically centered on whether the amendment protects an individual right to arms. Gun control supporters advanced essentially the "Salina" argument, but the Court, consistent with its previous rulings in Second Amendment-related cases, ruled that the amendment protects an individual right to keep arms and to bear arms "in case of confrontation," without regard to a person’s relationship to a militia.
In McDonald v. Chicago (2010), the court extended the Second Amendment's protection nationwide.
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
Massachusetts’ highest court ruled Tuesday that the state’s ban on civilian possession of stun guns violates the U.S. ...
Thursday, April 12, 2018
Last week’s shooting at YouTube’s California headquarters is certain to add momentum to the push for more gun ...
Monday, April 9, 2018
The most recent—and most harmful—came from John Paul Stevens, the retired Supreme Court Justice, who wrote an op-ed ...
Friday, April 6, 2018
“Now, here’s a dirty little secret: There are a whole lot of Democrats in Washington who agree with ...
Tuesday, April 3, 2018
"We are one of two countries that constitutionally have a right to bear arms, it’s prehistoric. Personally, it ...
Tuesday, April 3, 2018
Former Vice President Joe Biden joined the chorus of liberal criticism of the Second Amendment on Thursday saying ...
Monday, April 2, 2018
The chairwoman of the Louisiana Democratic Party is the most high-profile Democratic official in the country to date ...
Monday, April 2, 2018
Let me say it up front: I don't think we should repeal the Second Amendment. But I applaud ...
Monday, April 2, 2018
A group of students from Rockledge High School in Brevard County briefly walked out of class Friday to ...
Thursday, March 29, 2018
Democrats are panicking over retired Supreme Court Justice John Stevens’ comments on repealing the Second Amendment.