Gun Rights

Gun Rights in the United States

Gun Rights and Control Legislation

Firearm Regulation

State legislatures and municipal councils have, in general, greater practical influence in relation to gun regulations than does the Congress. In addition to state laws, the
federal Gun Control Act of 1968 and amendments to that enactment contained in the Firearms Owners Protection Act of 1986 contain provisions regulating the purchase, sale, possession, and interstate transportation of firearms. Local governments in the United States may have separate firearm ordinances.

State Constitutional Gun Rights Provisions

Forty-five states have constitutional provisions in respect of keeping and bearing arms. The following  state constitutions have no provisions about those rights:

  • California,
  • Iowa,
  • Maryland,
  • Minnesota, and
  • New Jersey

Some examples of the relevant wording of selected state constitutions follow:

  • Alabama: That every citizen has a right to bear arms in defense of himself and the state (art. I, para. 26).
  • Alaska: 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 (art. I, para. 19).
  • Arizona: The right of the individual citizen  to bear arms in defense of himself or the State shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain, or employ an armed body of men (art. II, para. 26).
  • Arkansas: The citizens of this State shall have the right to keep and bear arms for their common defense (art. II, para. 5).
  • Colorado: The right of no person to keep and bear arms in defense of his home, person and property, or in aid of the civil power when thereto legally summoned, shall be called in question; but nothing herein contained shall be construed to justify the practice of carrying concealed weapons (art. II, para. 13).
  • Connecticut: Every citizen has a right to bear arms in defense of himself and the state (art. I, para. 15).
  • Delaware: A person has the right to keep and bear arms for the defense of self, family, home and State, and for hunting and recreational use (art. I, para. 20).
  • Florida: The right of the people to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves and of the lawful authority of the state shall not be infringed, except that the manner of bearing arms may be regulated by law (art. I, para. 8).
  • Georgia: The right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed, but
    the General Assembly shall have power to prescribe the manner in which arms may be borne (art. I, para. I).
  • Hawaii: 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 (art. I, para. 15).

Gun control legislation and the Second Amendment

In the Adam Winkler’s 2011 book, Gunfight: The Battle Over the Right to Bear Arms in America, the author observes that even during the early years, our Republic had gun controls in place that today’s NRA would find objectionable. He also argues that the Second Amendment should be construed as a personal right of self-defense.


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5 responses to “Gun Rights”

  1. International Avatar
    International

    Slightly off topic but I’ve noticed threads regarding laws around gun rights are generally rational but threads regarding topics like Climate Change and marriage rights of same sex couples tend to attract the wingnuts. That seems odd to me considering the emotion around gun rights. Any theories on that?

  2. International Avatar
    International

    George Talbot

    The gun rights discussion is fairly simple and factual in terms of legal issues and rights. The evidence on the ground is also fairly well understood both for its strengths and weaknesses. Going outside known facts, known strengths, and known weaknesses results in looking like a fool.

    The proxy data behind climate change has vast standard error, and the thermometer data from 1906-1980 is better but still has larger standard error than the climate changes we purport to measure, and the time period from 1980-present, where we begin to have digital satellite IR readings over areas, isn’t long enough to winnow out differences between observed cycles and suspected anthropogenic climate change.

    Because of this, any actual belief on climate change is based on faith. Nothing is too ‘out there’ because nothing is even close to proven at this point. The more you honestly get into the data with real statistical tools the more you realize, “This data is crap. It’s what we have, but it’s still crap. Any inference we make based on this data is only a little bit more than a guess.”

  3. International Avatar
    International

    We think that many parts of the Bill of Rights were intended to be enforced on the states after ratification of the 14th Amendment (Privileges or Immunities Clause). The Second Amendment could not be more explicit. What we don’t believe is that vague notions of “due process” and “equal protection” were intended to give the federal judiciary unlimited power over the states.

  4. International Avatar
    International

    If you cannot obtain the arm, being able to keep and bear seems to be infringed. Was the 2A only in place to protect those alive at the time? How would people in later days get to keep and bear arms if they couldn’t acquire them in the first place?

    This is something like the right to buy contraceptives. The first case protected use in the home, but a later one determined that obtaining them also was important to the right at issue.

  5. International Avatar
    International

    How is your right to keep and bear something infringed if you don’t have that thing in the first place? “Keep” means to continue holding or possessing something, but you have to have it first. “Bear” means to hold up, but you cannot bear something you do not have to bear.

    As for how the right is sustained into the future, the law at issue lets people obtain arms by inheritance, so whoever has a gun now, his right to keep that gun and bear it is protected, and indeed, essentially attaches to the gun, so that future generations can keep and bear too.

    Certainly there is no textual argument that the 2A protects the right to buy or give guns away.

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