The Constitutionality of Gun Reform Laws
April 2021 | Maryam Raja, Staff Writer/Editor
Gun control is among one of the most controversial issues in America. The majority of the debate centers around if gun regulations impede an individual's right to bear arms, which is protected by the US Constitution. Specifically, the Second Amendment states, “a well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”[1] Originally, the purpose of the amendment was to prevent the United States from needing a standing army in hopes of the people being able to protect themselves.[2] The implicit interpretations of this amendment consist of two main arguments. The first perspective offers the explanation that a “well regulated militia” is merely in regards to organized groups having the right to bear arms. In opposition, some believe citizens should be allowed to bear arms without any federal restriction. Nonetheless, much of the passed gun control legislation has been deemed constitutional under the Second Amendment. Since the Second Amendment has been interpreted in different ways, understanding the history of gun reform– as well as its constitutionality– can allow for more productive discourse to occur and make way for larger change on a federal level.
In terms of federal changes, gun reform evolved throughout history because of various events such as presidential assassinations and racial strife; however, none of these events led to the Second Amendment being severely contested until District of Columbia vs. Heller (2008). The Supreme Court ruled the “35-year-old District of Columbia ordinance that prohibited the ownership or possession of handguns” violated the Second Amendment.[3] In a 5-4 decision, Justice Antonin Scalia resolved the prohibition of handguns was ultimately unconstitutional, as Americans reserve the right to own handguns for the “sake of security.”[4] To apply this on a national level, the Second Amendment serves as “a limitation only upon the power of Congress and the National government, and not upon that of the States.”[5] However, this does not necessarily mean that states are able to deny the right to bear arms. The Supreme Court decided the Second Amendment should be “selectively incorporated into the rights of the Fourteenth Amendment”, as seen in McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010).[6] Up until McDonald, Second Amendment rights were prevented from becoming “impaired by state governments”[7] because the Second Amendment had not been selectively incorporated through the Fourteenth Amendment.
In addition, states still possess the ability to pass gun policies such as whether or not people are allowed to open carry, whereas the federal level can help determine other aspects like who is permitted to purchase guns.[8] An example of this on the federal level would be the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934. The NFA allowed “shotguns, rifles, machine guns, firearm mufflers and silencers” to become regulated.[9] This legislation was different from previous gun control legislation in that it focused solely on taxing on the transfer of certain types of weapons, so it did not violate the Second Amendment.[10] Another federal law is the Gun Control Act of 1968, which prohibited convicted felons, mentally-incompetent individuals, and drug users from being able to purchase a gun legally.[11] Supreme Court cases such as Lewis v. United States (1980) featured arguments that determined it was constitutional to prevent felons from obtaining firearms.[12] The Court had restated its notion from United States v. Miller (1939) that ruled: “[T]he Second Amendment guarantees no right to keep and bear a firearm that does not have 'some reasonable relationship to the preservation or efficiency of a well regulated militia.”[13] Basically, the Court held that the “right to bear arms was not a fundamental right” and that the act’s provisions stood because “they had a rational basis and had relevance to the purpose of the statute.”[14] The aforementioned court decisions sustained that gun reform is achievable through upholding the Second Amendment and regulating firearms. Thus, states can regulate their gun policies on a smaller scale while still adhering to the Second Amendment.
In spite of the fact that various stances have been taken on gun reform and the extent to which legislation should restrict gun ownership, executive changes have brought upon changes as well. As seen in the current administration under President Biden, there are many new plans proposed to curb gun violence, but the plans face political obstacles before becoming law. Regardless of politics, the recent increase in mass shootings only further exposes a need for gun control legislation. It is no surprise that these last few years have been increasingly frightening due to many uncertainties. One uncertainty has been the insecurity felt by the public due to lax gun control, especially considering the fact that the country experienced many shootings over the last several years. Overall, there are many indications that perhaps it is time to become like other developed countries and implement gun reform on a federal level. This is not necessarily to say that the Second Amendment will be attacked, but history shows that it is certainly possible to pass federal policies that both protect our Second Amendment right and implement efficient gun reform.
Sources
"Second Amendment | Law Library Of Congress". 2021. Loc.Gov.
Shusterman, Noah. 2018. “Perspective | What the Second Amendment Really Meant to the Founders.” The Washington Post, February 22, 2018.
Chemerinsky, Erwin. 2019. “The Second Amendment Does Not Bar Gun Control. Let’s Stop Pretending That It Does.” Sacbee. The Sacramento Bee. August 22, 2019.
Ibid.
"Second Amendment | Law Library Of Congress". 2021. Loc.Gov.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Deutsche Welle. 2018. “8 Facts about Gun Control in the US | DW | 08.11.2018.” DW.COM. 2018.
Saum, Kim. n.d. “Research Guides: Gun Laws and Controls: Introduction.” Libguides.cccneb.edu. Accessed April 27, 2021.
“National Firearms Act of (1934) - Further Readings.” 2019. Jrank.org. 2019.
Benthien, Samantha. “Understanding America's History Of Gun Control.” History News Network, Oct. 2019.
“Gun Control Act of 1968 | Encyclopedia.com.” n.d. Www.encyclopedia.com. Accessed April 27, 2021.
Ibid.
Ibid.