Feature Story

September 30, 2009

Legal Community Against Violence Reacts to Supreme Court Decision to Hear Chicago Handgun Ban Case

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Today, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it will review the Seventh Circuit's decision in McDonald v. Chicago, which held that the Second Amendment does not apply to state and local governments. In the Chicago case, the Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of lawsuits alleging that Chicago and Oak Park ordinances prohibiting the possession or sale of handguns violate the Second Amendment. The court concluded it was bound by Supreme Court precedent holding that the Amendment applies only to the federal government, stating that the Supreme Court alone can reverse those cases. The court observed further that under principles of federalism, "local differences are to be cherished as elements of liberty" and that "[f]ederalism is an older and more deeply rooted tradition than is a right to carry any particular kind of weapon." Read more from this post.