Hawkflyer
Founder's Club Member
imported post
UPDATE: Washington, D.C. Circuit Court Strikes Down
30-Year Old D.C. Gun Ban
'We conclude that the Second Amendment protects an
individual right to keep and bear arms'
WASHINGTON, March 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a
ground-breaking opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the District of Columbia Circuit today overturned the
D.C. gun ban, a three-decade old prohibition on
possession of firearms within the Nation's Capital.
Senior Judge Lawrence H. Silberman, joined by Judge
Thomas B. Griffith, a recent Bush appointee,
concluded that "the Second Amendment protects an
individual right to keep and bear arms." Judge Karen
Lecraft Henderson filed a dissenting opinion.
The case, Parker v. District of Columbia, was
brought by six D.C. residents -- including Cato senior
fellow Tom Palmer -- who sought to keep
functional firearms in their homes for self-defense.
The appellate court reversed a lower D.C. court on all
counts, and held that the activities protected by the
Second Amendment "are not limited to militia service,
nor is an individual's enjoyment of the right
contingent upon his or her continued intermittent
enrollment in the militia."
Cato senior fellow Robert A. Levy acted as
co-counsel to the plaintiffs.
Under existing law, no handgun could be registered
in the District, and even pistols registered prior to
D.C.'s 1976 ban could not be carried from room to room
within a home without a license. The sum result of
D.C.'s myriad firearm codes: no one within the city
limits may possess a
functional firearm within his or her own home.
"This decision is a very big deal," said Tim
Lynch, director of Cato's Project on Criminal Justice,
upon announcement of the ruling. "The Supreme
Court is very likely to review this case, which means
we're about a year away from a definitive ruling from
the high court on the meaning of the Second Amendment
-- is it just about militias or does the Constitution
guarantee an individual right to keep and bear arms?"
For the full opinion, see:
http://pacer.cadc.uscourts.gov/docs/common/opinions/200703/04-7041a.pdf
The full text of the original complaint, Parker v.
District of Columbia, is available at
http://www.cato.org/pubs/legalbriefs/gunsuit.pdf
Contact: Susan Semeleer, Cato Institute, senior
manager of media relations, 202-789-5212, or Evans
Pierre, Cato Institute, director of broadcasting,
202-789-5200
SOURCE Cato Institute
(c) 1996-2007 PR Newswire Association LLC.
UPDATE: Washington, D.C. Circuit Court Strikes Down
30-Year Old D.C. Gun Ban
'We conclude that the Second Amendment protects an
individual right to keep and bear arms'
WASHINGTON, March 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a
ground-breaking opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the District of Columbia Circuit today overturned the
D.C. gun ban, a three-decade old prohibition on
possession of firearms within the Nation's Capital.
Senior Judge Lawrence H. Silberman, joined by Judge
Thomas B. Griffith, a recent Bush appointee,
concluded that "the Second Amendment protects an
individual right to keep and bear arms." Judge Karen
Lecraft Henderson filed a dissenting opinion.
The case, Parker v. District of Columbia, was
brought by six D.C. residents -- including Cato senior
fellow Tom Palmer -- who sought to keep
functional firearms in their homes for self-defense.
The appellate court reversed a lower D.C. court on all
counts, and held that the activities protected by the
Second Amendment "are not limited to militia service,
nor is an individual's enjoyment of the right
contingent upon his or her continued intermittent
enrollment in the militia."
Cato senior fellow Robert A. Levy acted as
co-counsel to the plaintiffs.
Under existing law, no handgun could be registered
in the District, and even pistols registered prior to
D.C.'s 1976 ban could not be carried from room to room
within a home without a license. The sum result of
D.C.'s myriad firearm codes: no one within the city
limits may possess a
functional firearm within his or her own home.
"This decision is a very big deal," said Tim
Lynch, director of Cato's Project on Criminal Justice,
upon announcement of the ruling. "The Supreme
Court is very likely to review this case, which means
we're about a year away from a definitive ruling from
the high court on the meaning of the Second Amendment
-- is it just about militias or does the Constitution
guarantee an individual right to keep and bear arms?"
For the full opinion, see:
http://pacer.cadc.uscourts.gov/docs/common/opinions/200703/04-7041a.pdf
The full text of the original complaint, Parker v.
District of Columbia, is available at
http://www.cato.org/pubs/legalbriefs/gunsuit.pdf
Contact: Susan Semeleer, Cato Institute, senior
manager of media relations, 202-789-5212, or Evans
Pierre, Cato Institute, director of broadcasting,
202-789-5200
SOURCE Cato Institute
(c) 1996-2007 PR Newswire Association LLC.