As Jonathan notes below, Doug Berman asks at Sentencing Law & Policy whether the DC Circuit's Parker case will alter sentencing enhancements for weapons possession. I think the answer is generally "no." The first reason is pretty straightforward: Most circuits have already rejected the individual rights interpretation of the Second Amendment. A defendant in such a circuit obviously isn't going to have any luck with any kind of Second Amendment argument.

  Second, even under Parker's individual rights interpretation the Second Amendment permits reasonable regulation of gun possession. For example, the Fifth Circuit's 2001 Emerson decision adopting an individual rights interpretation of the Second Amendment ultimately upheld the federal prosecution for possessing a firearm while subject to a state court order prohibiting it entered in a divorce action.

  My sense is that the allowance for reasonable regulations would render most (if not all) federal sentencing enhancements constitutional even under the Parker approach. For example, Doug points to the Angelos case, a case involving a drug dealer who used guns when he bought and sold marijuana. It is true, as Doug says, that Angelos received an enhancement for possessing guns at home. However, I believe there was more to it than that: under 18 U.S.C. 924(c), the jury had to and did find that Angelos possessed the guns at home "in furtherance" of his drug trafficking crimes. It seems to me that it doesn't infringe on the "core" of the Second Amendment to criminalize possessing a gun in furtherance of illegal drug trafficking offenses. To the extent others share that view, it would indicate that such enhancements do not violate the Second Amendment even under the Parker/Emerson individual rights view.

  With all of that said, it's hard to know what impact Parker will have until the Supreme Court takes a look. My guess is that the Supreme Court will grant cert, agree with the individual rights interpretation (probably 5-4), but then impose only a very deferential review of existing regulations that will end up largely maintaining the status quo.