Progressive Dementia: Claiming Kopel Doesn’t Know Gun Laws
I normally don’t get into the pit with mudwrestlers, but the gob of muck that flew past my desk today was too rich to ignore. One of Colorado’s lefty pressure groups is claiming that II’s Research Director Dave Kopel fed the 2013 Colorado legislature false information on gun bills. II’s “credibility . . . has […]
The “Pro-Gun” Provisions of Manchin-Toomey are Actually a Bonanza of Gun Control
Originally published on Volokh.com The Toomey-Manchin Amendment which may be offered as soon as Tuesday to Senator Reid’s gun control bill are billed as a “compromise” which contain a variety of provisions for gun control, and other provisions to enhance gun rights. Some of the latter, however, are not what they seem. They are badly miswritten, […]
Protecting People Against "Gun Control"
My recent address in Grand Junction on the Colorado gun control laws has received widespread notice. This is particularly so of the part pointing out that the same arguments used by the legislative majority for gun control could be used to restrict other constitutional rights, such as free speech and sexual choice. I’ve reproduced the […]
OSHA Targets Shooting Range
Originally published on Volokh.com The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued a citation, along with a proposed fine of $111,000 fine (OSHA press release here), against Illinois Gun Works–a gun store and gunsmith business which has a shooting range and teaches safety classes. HT Instapundit and David Codrea. In a November 2009 article for […]
Could President Perry Carry a Gun?
Originally published on Volokh.com Chris Moody attempts to analyze the issue for The Ticket. The analysis could have been improved by reading the laws of the District of Columbia. Moody describes D.C. as “a city that bans carrying firearms.” That’s not exactly correct. The D.C. Code generally prohibits carrying a firearm “without a license issued pursuant […]
Ezell’s Doctrinal Rules for the Second Amendment
Originally published on Volokh.com The Seventh Circuit’s decision in Ezell v. Chicago is a tremendously important case for Second Amendment doctrine. The key rules from Ezell: use originalism from both 1791 and 1868 to determine if an activity is within the scope of the Second Amendment right. If it is, apply First Amendment doctrine, and make […]
Brown v. EMA Casts Doubt on the “Weapons Effect” Justification for Gun Control
Originally published on Volokh.com Today’s Supreme Court decision in Brown v. EMA casts doubt on one of the shibboleths of gun prohibition. Since the 1960s, some social scientists have been attempting to prove that guns cause violence. They do not make this claim in the straightforward sense that guns, as tools, can be used for malign purposes–for […]
Second Circuit Reverses Judge Weinstein’s Order against Firearms Stores
Originally published on Volokh.com City of New York v. Mickalis Pawn Shop was recently decided by a unanimous 3-judge panel of 2d Circuit Judges Sack and Wesley, plus Judge Eaton (Court of International Trade) sitting by designation. The case began several years ago when New York City Michael Bloomberg brought a public nuisance lawsuit against several […]
Colorado State University Board Rescinds Ban on Licensed Firearms Carry
Originally published on Volokh.com The ban at the Fort Collins and Pueblo campuses, had been scheduled to take effect on August 1. The prospective ban had been imposed last winter, by a unanimous vote of the Governing Board, and against the express vote of the Student Senate. Congratulations to Rocky Mountain Gun Owners for bringing the […]
Mayor Daley and Other Mayors: Seek “Redress against the Gun Industry” in the World Court
Originally published on Volokh.com April 27 was the tenth annual “Richard J. Daley Global Cities Forum,” held in Chicago. Over a hundred mayors and other local government leaders assembled to discuss global issues. As reported in the Chicago Sun-Times, “Daley convinced more than a dozen of his counterparts from around the world to approve a resolution […]
“Reasonable Regulation” and McDonald
Originally published on Volokh.com The following exchange took place during James Feldman’s oral argument today, on behalf of the Chicago government, in McDonald v. Chicago: JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: Would you be happy if we incorporated it and said, reasonable regulation is part of the incorporation? And how do we do that? MR. FELDMAN: Well, there is the […]
Institute for Justice Brief in McDonald v. Chicago
Originally published on Volokh.com Counsel of record is Clark Neilly, who was Alan Gura’s right-hand man in Heller. The most important part of the brief is Part III, which begins: “To enslave a class of people requires three basic things: destroy their self-sufficiency, prevent them from fighting back, and silence any opposition.” The brief then goes […]
