District of Columbia v. Heller

Holding: (1) The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home. (2) Like most rights, the Second Amendment right is not unlimited. It is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose: For example, concealed weapons prohibitions have been upheld under the amendment or state analogues. The court's opinion should not be taken to cast doubt on long-standing prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms. The holding in United States v. Miller that the sorts of weapons protected are those "in common use at the time" finds support in the historical tradition of prohibiting the carrying of dangerous and unusual weapons. (3) The handgun ban and the trigger-lock requirement (as applied to self-defense) violate the Second Amendment. The District of Columbia's total ban on handgun possession in the home amounts to a prohibition on an entire class of "arms" that Americans overwhelmingly choose for the lawful purpose of self-defense. Under any of the standards of scrutiny the court has applied to enumerated constitutional rights, this prohibition -- in the place where the importance of the lawful defense of self, family and property is most acute -- would fail constitutional muster. Similarly, the requirement that any lawful firearm in the home be disassembled or bound by a trigger lock makes it impossible for citizens to use arms for the core lawful purpose of self-defense and is hence unconstitutional. Because Dick Heller conceded at oral argument that the D. C. licensing law is permissible if it is not enforced arbitrarily and capriciously, the court assumes that a license will satisfy his prayer for relief and does not address the licensing requirement. Assuming he is not disqualified from exercising Second Amendment rights, the district must permit Heller to register his handgun and must issue him a license to carry it in the home.

Judgment: Affirmed, 5-4, in an opinion by Justice Antonin Scalia on June 26, 2008. Justice Stevens filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justices Souter, Ginsburg and Breyer joined. Justice Breyer filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justices Stevens, Souter and Ginsburg joined.

SCOTUSblog Coverage

• Heller Discussion Board: Miller, Colt .45s and Natural Law (Ben Winograd, June 27, 2008)
• Heller Discussion Board: Substantial Victory for American Gun Owners? (Brian Sagona, June 27, 2008)
• Heller Discussion Board: A Toe in the Water (Ben Winograd, June 26, 2008)
• Commentary: So, what's next on guns? (Lyle Denniston, June 26, 2008)
• Heller Discussion Board: Incorporation and the Need for Further Litigation (Ben Winograd, June 26, 2008)
• Heller Discussion Board: "Clarity is in the Eye of the Beholder" (Brian Sagona, June 26, 2008)
• Court: A constitutional right to a gun (Lyle Denniston, June 26, 2008)
• My Sense of the Bottom-Line from Heller (updated at 11:30) (Tom Goldstein, June 26, 2008)
• Analysis: Defining a right of self-defense (Lyle Denniston, March 18, 2008)
• The View From Cambridge: Professor Fried on the Guns Case (Jason Harrow, March 17, 2008)
• The View From Cambridge: Professor Tribe on the Guns Case (Jason Harrow, March 17, 2008)
• Analysis: History's lessons on gun rights (Lyle Denniston, March 15, 2008)
• U.S. supports gun rights, but more narrowly (Lyle Denniston, January 11, 2008)
• Court agrees to rule on gun case (Lyle Denniston, November 20, 2007)
• Court to examine gun appeals Nov. 20 (Lyle Denniston, November 15, 2007)
• Court takes no action on gun case (Lyle Denniston, November 13, 2007)
• Preview: The Second Amendment case (Lyle Denniston, November 2, 2007)
• Limited gun ruling urged (Lyle Denniston, October 23, 2007)
• D.C. resists expansion of gun case review (Lyle Denniston, October 12, 2007)
• Court urged to hear D.C. gun case (Lyle Denniston, October 4, 2007)

Briefs and Documents

Certiorari Stage

• Opinion below
• Petition for certiorari
• Brief in response
• Petitioner’s reply
• Amicus brief of the American Academy of Pediatrics (in support of petitioner)
• Amicus brief of New York, Hawaii, Illinois, and Maryland (in support of petitioner)
• Amicus brief of the American Civil Rights Union (in support of respondent)

Merits Stage

• Brief of Petitioners District of Columbia and Adrian M. Fenty, Mayor of the District of Columbia
• Brief of Respondent Dick Anthony Heller
• Reply Brief of Petitioners

Amicus briefs

Supporting petitioner or neither party

• Brief for Violence Policy Center and the Police Chiefs for the Cities of Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and Seattle in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Major American Cities, the United State Conference of Mayors and Legal Community Against Violence in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Jack N. Rakove, Saul Cornell, David T. Konig, William J. Novak, Lois G. Schwoerer et al. in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Law Professors Erwin Chemerinsky and Adam Winkler, as in Support of Petitoner
• Brief for American Public Health Association, American College of Preventive Medicine, American Trauma Society, and American Association of Suicidology in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Former Department of Justice Officials in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Professors of Criminal Justice in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the City of Chicago and the Board of Education of the City of Chicago in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for DC Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, D.C. Chamber of Commerce, D.C. for Democracy, D.C. League of Women Voters, Federal City Council of Lawyers in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Society for Adolescent Medicine, the Childrens Defense Fund, Women Against Gun Violence, and Youth Alive! in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for District Attorneys in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund in Support of Petitioners
• Brief for the American Bar Association in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, Major Cities Chiefs, the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, the Hispanic American Police Command Officers Association, National Black Police Association, the National Latino Peace Officers Association, School Safety Advocacy Council, and the Police Executive Research Forum in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for New York, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Professors of Linguistics and English Dennis E. Baron, Ph. D, Richard W. Bailey, Ph. D, and Jeffrey P. Kaplan in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the United States of America
• Brief for the the American Jewish Committee et al. in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the National Network to End Domestic Violence et al. in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Members of Congress in Support of Reversal

• Brief for American Legislative Exchange in Support of Respondent
• Brief for GeorgiaCarry.org, Inc. in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Congress of Racial Equality in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Buckeye Firearms Foundation LLC, National Council for Investigationand Security Services, Ohio Association of Private Detective Agencies, Inc., DBA Ohio Association of Security and Investigation Services (OASIS), Michigan Council of Private Investigators, Indiana Association of Professional Investigators, and Kentucky Professional Investigators Association in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Disabled Veterans for Self-Defense and Kestra Childers in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Criminologists, Social Scientists, Other Distinguished Scholars, and the Claremont Institute in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Foundation for Free Expression in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Rutherford Institute in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Pink Pistols and Gays and Lesbians for Individual Liberty in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Alaska Outdoor Council, the Alaska Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fund, SITKA Sportsman’s Association, the Juneau Rifle and Pistol Club, the Juneau Gun Club, and Alaska Territorial Sportsmen, Inc. in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Major General John D. Altenburg, Jr., Lieutenant General Charles E. Dominy, Lieutenant General Tom Fields, Lieutenant General Jay M. Garner, General Ronald H. Griffith, General William H. Hartzog, Lieutenant General Ronald V. Hite, Major General John. G. Meyer, Jr., Honorable Joe R. Reeder, Lieutenant General Dutch Shoffner, General John Tilelli, and The American Hunters and Shooters Association in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the National Rifle Association and the NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Grass Roots of South Carolina, Inc. in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Libertarian National Committee in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Second Amendment Foundation in Support of Respondent
• Brief for 55 Members of the United States Senate, the President of the U.S. Senate, and 250 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives in Support of Respondent
• Brief for 126 Women State Legislatures and Academics in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Virginia1774.org in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Paragon Foundation in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the CATO Institute and History Professor Joyce Lee Malcolm in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA), the International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors (IALEFI), Maryland State Lodge, the Fraternal Order of Police, the Southern States Police Benevolent Association, 29 Elected California District Attorneys, the San Francisco Veteran Police Officers Association, the Long Beach Police Officers Association, Texas Police Chiefs Association, Texas Municipal Police Association, New York State Association of Auxiliary Police, Mendocino County, California Sheriff Thomas D. Allman, Oregon State Rep. Andy Olson, the National Police Defense Foundation, the Law Enforcement Alliance of America, and the Independence Institute in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the States of Texas, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia, Washignton, West Virginia, and Wyoming in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Organizations and Scholars Correcting Myths and Misrepresentations Commonly Deployed by Opponents of an Individual-Right-Based Interpretation of the Second Amendment in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the President Pro Tempore of the Senate of Pennsylvania Joseph B. Scarnati, III in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the American Center for Law and Justice in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Mountain States Legal Foundation in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Institute for Justice in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Former Senior Officials of the Department of Justice in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Foundation for Moral Law in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Gun Owners of America, Inc., the Gun Owners Foundation, Maryland Shall Issue, Inc., the Virginia Citizens Defense League, Gun Owners of California, Inc., the Lincoln Institute for Research and Education, and the Conservative Legal Defense and Education Fund in Support of Respondent
• Brief for State Firearm Associations in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Southeastern Legal Foundation, Inc., Second Amendment Sisters, Inc., Women Against Gun Control, 60 Plus Association, Inc., Robert B. Smith, J.D., Christie Davies, M.A., Ph. D. Joe Michael Cobb, and Mrs. Minnie Lee Faulkner in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Dr. Suzanna Gratia Hupp, D.C. and the Liberty Legal Institute in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Academics in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Academics for the Second Amendment in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Center for Individual Freedom in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Retired Military Officers in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Heartland Institute in Support of Respondent
• Brief for National Shooting Sports Foundation, Inc., in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Goldwater Institute in Support of Respondent
• Brief for American Civil Rights Union in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Eagle Forum Education and Legal Defense Fund in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Jeanette M. Moll et al. in Support of Respondent
• Brief for International Scholars in Support of Respondent