One of the more recent cases on gun control is District of Columbia v. Heller (2008). The other is McDonald v. Chicago (2010), both cases the last cases that the Supreme Court took regarding gun control.
On June 26, 2008, the Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals in Heller v. District of Columbia. In District of Columbia v. Heller, the Supreme Court held a 5-4 decision (5 in favor of the District of Columbia, 4 against) that the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution applies to federal enclaves and protects an individual’s right to possess a firearm for traditionally lawful uses, even though the individual is unrelated to the militia, such as self-defense within the home. Federal enclaves are lands, buildings, and/or other real property given to the federal government by the state government. This includes but is not limited to: military bases, national parks, federal courthouses, and, in this case, the District of Columbia. This case was a landmark case as it was the first Supreme Court case to decided whether or not the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to keep and bear arms for self-defense.
Although the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the right to own a gun, there were still many conditions.
1. The Second Amendment’s introductory clause announces a purpose, but does not limit or expand the scope of the second part, the operative clause.
2. The “militia” is comprised of all males physically capable of acting in concert for the common defense.
3. The Second Amendment does not give the right to keep and carry any weapon, regardless of type, in any manner whatsoever and for any purpose.
4. The handgun ban and the trigger-lock requirement violates the Second Amendment, deeming the Firearms Regulation Act of 1975 as unconstitutional
One June 28, 2010, the Supreme Court held a 5-4 decision that stated the Second Amendment was incorporated under the Fourteenth Amendment, thus protecting those rights from infringements from local governments. McDonald v. Chicago was a landmark decision because the Supreme Court had determined whether the Second Amendment applies to individual states. The Supreme Court had reasoned that the Second Amendment was protected by the Fourteenth Amendment as a result of the Due Process Clause and thus applies to states. This case was also a major case because it cleared up many questions regarding the conclusion of District of Columbia v. Heller.