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Supremes Appear Set to KO DC's Handgun Ban

In key 2nd Amendment case, Kennedy notes 'general right to bear arms'

By Jonas Oransky,  Newser Staff

Posted Mar 18, 2008 2:21 PM CDT
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(Newser) – The Supreme Court looks ready to declare Washington, DC’s handgun ban unconstitutional, the LA Times report. The justices heard oral arguments in the landmark Second Amendment case today, and swing voter Anthony Kennedy said, “In my view, there is a general right to bear arms.” At issue is whether the provision applies only to state militias or if it protects an individual right to own weapons.

The case is critical because it’s unprecedented: The high court has never used the amendment to strike down gun laws or to protect ownership rights. The four liberal justices appeared ready to defend the ban, considered the strictest in the country. John Paul Stevens said the right protected only “the common defense,” but the chief justice was indignant about the District’s law: “Why is that a reasonable regulation?”

Supporters of the District of Columbia's firearms ban stand outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18,2008, as the court hears arguments in an attempt to overturn the ban.
Supporters of the District of Columbia's firearms ban stand outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18,2008, as the court hears arguments in an attempt to overturn the ban.   (AP Photo/Dennis Cook)
Spectators line up outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18,2008, to hear arguments in an attempt to overturn the District of Columbia's firearms ban.
Spectators line up outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18,2008, to hear arguments in an attempt to overturn the District of Columbia's firearms ban.   (AP Photo/Dennis Cook)
Dick Anthony Heller, 65, stands outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18, 2008.
Dick Anthony Heller, 65, stands outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18, 2008.   (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Pro-gun advocate Paul Mendez, center, from Silver Springs, Md., holds up a sign outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18, 2008.
Pro-gun advocate Paul Mendez, center, from Silver Springs, Md., holds up a sign outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, March 18, 2008.   (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
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More on the law and today's back-and-forth
New York Times

It's been 70 years between Second Amendment cases
Washington Post

The laws that inform and respond to the Second Amendment
Volokh Conspiracy

Blogger: What's unclear is which guns the amendment protects
SCOTUSblog

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John Roberts • Washington DC • Anthony Kennedy • Constitution • Second Amendment • John Paul Stevens • US Supreme Court • handgun • constitutional law • gun ban

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