Second Amendment

2nd Circuit Strikes FCC Expletive Rule, Says Blanket Ban on F-Word & Others Violates 1st Amendment

Saying that a blanket ban on all use of certain expletives on television is unconstitutionally vague and chills the right of free speech, a federal appeals court has struck down a Federal Communications Commission policy that any use of profanity referring to sex or excrement is inherently indecent and could…

Jul 13, 2010 6:01 PM CDT

Supreme Court Extends Second Amendment to the States, Casts Doubt on Chicago Handgun Ban

Developing: The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled the Second Amendment applies to state and local governments, a ruling that casts doubt on Chicago’s gun regulations. The New York Times calls the ruling “an enormous symbolic victory for supporters of gun rights” while the Washington Post says it may be “more…

Jun 28, 2010 2:14 PM CDT

2nd Circuit: Ban on Law Firm Nicknames Violates First Amendment

A federal appeals court has struck down many of New York’s lawyer advertising restrictions on First Amendment grounds. The New York City-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued the opinion (PDF) on Friday, the New York Law Journal reports. The court struck down bans on: • Nicknames such as…

Mar 15, 2010 12:23 PM CDT

Does Second Amendment Apply to States? Scalia Said No in 1997 Book

When the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments March 2 on whether the Second Amendment applies to the states, court observers will be watching to see if Justice Antonin Scalia’s views have changed since he wrote a 1997 book. Scalia wrote that the Second Amendment does not limit arms control by…

Feb 22, 2010 11:30 AM CST

Supreme Court Accepts New Second Amendment Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a Chicago case that asks whether the Second Amendment applies to state and local governments. The name plaintiff in the Chicago case is Otis McDonald, an elderly man who keeps a shotgun at home to protect himself from gangs, the Chicago Tribune…

Sep 30, 2009 2:18 PM CDT

Will Second Amendment Be Incorporated Through Citizenship Clause?

Federal appeals courts hearing gun rights cases after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Second Amendment ruling last year in District of Columbia v. Heller are confronting an old issue: whether the amendment applies to restrict state and local laws under the incorporation doctrine. Heller found that the Second Amendment protected an…

Jun 17, 2009 11:49 AM CDT

Successful Second Amendment Legal Team Seeks $3.5M in Fees

The legal team that won a U.S. Supreme Court Second Amendment ruling is seeking $3.5 million in legal fees. Lawyer Alan Gura says in a motion filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., that he and two other lawyers worked more than 3,000 hours on the case, Legal Times reports.…

Aug 27, 2008 5:54 PM CDT

Appeals Court Rejects Militia Organizer’s Second Amendment Claim

A federal appeals court has ruled a man who organized his own militia did not have a Second Amendment right to possess a machine gun. Hollis Wayne Fincher had argued that his Washington County Militia was a well-regulated militia that was protected by the amendment. A federal judge rejected his…

Aug 14, 2008 10:50 AM CDT

Second Amendment Opinion May Lack Firepower

Harvard Law School professor Mark Tushnet believes Justice Antonin Scalia’s recent majority opinion striking down a ban on handguns in the home was a compromise decision, crafted to appeal to a swing voter such as Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. As evidence of a compromise, Tushnet points to Scalia’s statement in…

Aug 8, 2008 11:18 PM CDT

Plaintiff Who Won Second Amendment Case Files New Gun Suit

The plaintiff who won a U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down a ban on handguns in the home has filed a new lawsuit challenging Washington, D.C.’s new gun registration system. Plaintiff Dick Heller seeks to overturn provisions that include a requirement for ballistics tests of registered handguns and restrictions on…

Jul 29, 2008 6:14 PM CDT

Felons Claim Second Amendment Gives Them Right to Own Guns

Felons such as James Francis Barton Jr. are challenging federal laws that bar them from owning guns. Barton has been charged with keeping at his Pittsburgh home seven pistols, three shotguns and five rifles, the Associated Press reports. Judges have so far disagreed with that argument but Barton’s Pennsylvania lawyer,…

Jul 21, 2008 12:16 PM CDT

Second Amendment Ruling Is Justice Scalia’s Originalism ‘Legacy’

The majority ruling yesterday by Justice Antonin Scalia finding a Second Amendment right to own handguns in the home is “his most important in his 22 years on the court,” according to a New York Times story. Scalia has a no-compromise style that often leads to loss of his colleagues’…

Jun 27, 2008 11:25 AM CDT

Supreme Court Rules 5-4 that Second Amendment Protects Right to Own Guns

Updated: The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled 5-4 that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to own a gun, apart from service in a militia, SCOTUSblog reports. As predicted, Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the majority opinion in the case, District of Columbia v. Heller. Scalia writes in the decision…

Jun 26, 2008 2:15 PM CDT

Second Amendment Gun Ruling Expected Today

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue the three final rulings of the term today, including a decision on whether the Second Amendment protects an individual right to own guns. At issue is whether the amendment protects only the right of state militias to bear arms or whether it…

Jun 26, 2008 10:38 AM CDT