At Balkinization, Andy Koppelman has witty – and wise – rejoinder to the discussion Nick and I have had here about the plural of “Arms“: If this strict textualism is to be followed, there is an interesting implication: perhaps there is only a right to bear “arms” – plural – but not to bear a […]
Tag Archives | Second Amendment
Is the Right to Bear Arms Plural?
By Eugene Kontorovich on July 8, 2013 10:04 am in Constitutional Amendments, Constitutional Law, Guns, Militia, Originalism, Right to carry, Seventh Circuit, Uncategorized
Tomorrow, Illinois’ concealed carry laws will become ineffective, having been held unconstitutional by the Seventh Circuit several months ago. The Court kept the unconstitutional law on life support for a few months to give the legislature time to craft a replacement measure. Springfield responded, but now that bill has been vetoed by Governor Quinn. If […]
The rise and fall of the Second Amendment “collective right”
By David Kopel on September 5, 2011 3:38 pm in Constitutional History, Constitutional Law, Guns, History, Militia, Supreme Court
My recent article for America’s 1st Freedom traces the rise and fall of the theory that the Second Amendment is not an individual right, but instead is a “collective right,” which, like “collective property” in a communist country, supposedly belongs to everyone collectively, but in fact belongs to no-one. The theory was created by a […]
Stun gun prohibition violates Second Amendment
So rules a state judge in Bay City, Michigan. According to the ruling, the regulation of stun guns would be constitutional, but not their prohibition. Other than Michigan, the only states that prohibit stun guns are New Jersey and Rhode Island. Eugene Volokh’s Stanford Law Review article, Nonlethal Self-Defense examines the Second Amendment issues involving […]
McDonald v. Chicago and Gilbert & Sullivan: The hidden connection!
In March 1994, I was in the Georgetown Gilbert & Sullivan Society‘s production of Gilbert & Sullivan‘s operetta Patience. You can find a list of the Society’s past shows here; I was also in the same show the next time they produced it, in April 2007. Also, you can find the libretto of the show […]
Petitioner’s Brief in McDonald v. City of Chicago (The Second Amendment Incorporation Case)
Today the Petitioners in McDonald v. City of Chicago, the case on whether the Second Amendment applies to the states, filed their merits brief. You can read it here. It’s a truly remarkable brief. It devotes 55 pages to arguing that the Supreme Court should overturn The Slaughterhouse Cases (1873) and embark on a […]