Supreme Court Majority Appears to Favor Individual Right to Own Guns
The U.S. Supreme Court appeared inclined to uphold an individual right to bear arms in oral arguments this morning, SCOTUSblog reports.
But a majority of the court appeared to believe that the right had limits and would not extend to machine guns, plastic guns, and the like, the blog said.
Justice Stephen G. Breyer appeared to be seeking to narrow the scope of the individual right when he suggested that gun regulations are reasonable if they allow individuals to own weapons that could be used in military service. But none of the court’s conservative members expressed much interest in that approach.
The blog warned that early assessments based on oral arguments can turn out to be wrong. The court is not expected to issue a decision for several months, the Washington Post reports.
Protesters who held views on both sides of the issue appeared outside the court, the Associated Press reports. A line of people waiting to observe the arguments began to form two days ago. About 60 people were in line by Monday evening, USA Today reports. First in line were Jason McCrory and Dan Mott. They said the outdoor wait was cold and long, but a man who backed the gun rights side brought them an extra blanket.
Additional coverage:
Associated Press: “Supreme Court Reviews D.C. Handgun Ban”
Updated at 2:17 p.m. to include second Associated Press story.
