Supreme Court Once Again Decline Cases Involving Gun Control

On June 15, the Supreme Court declined to take up cases connected to the scope of the Second Amendment, which talks about gun reform in the United States.

Limiting the availability of firearms

The justices turned down petitions asking to limit the accessibility and availability of some models of firearms, the petition also asks to create a law about when firearms can be carried in public.

The Second Amendment protects an American citizen's right to keep and bear arms for self-defense and it has been over a decade since the landmark 5-4 ruling in District of Columbia V Heler that took place in 2008.

The Supreme Court had not touched the topic of the Second Amendment since 2010. In April 2020, the Supreme Court also declined to weigh in on Second Amendment cases.

Out of the 10 cases, five of them covers the question of whether the Second Amendment allows the government to limit the ability of the Americans to carry their firearm outside. Two of the cases covers challenges to state laws, and it talks about the banning of semiautomatic rifles and magazines, one of the case is from Illinois and one is from Massachusetts.

The other three cases had a narrow coverage. All 10 cases were not opened by the Supreme Court. The executive director of the Center for Firearms Law at Duke Law School, Jacob Charles, said he was surprised that the Court denied all 10 cases connected to the Amendment considering that it has been pushed by the lower courts and the public for years.

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According to Charles, the petitions that the Court denied states the questions in Second Amendment law which includes what type of firearms the Constitution protects and whether citizens can carry their firearms outside of their home.

For now, it seems like the Supreme Court is letting the issues about the Second Amendment get sorted out by the lower courts.

Gun safety and banning semiautomatic firearms

In the past few years, three justices in the Court have talked about their desire to review a case connected to the Second Amendment. In May 2020, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said that he believes the lower courts are pressuring them to take up the said cases. He also said that the Supreme Court will address the issues soon.

In 2018, Justice Clarence Thomas said that the lower courts were treating the rights of the Second Amendment arrogantly. The chief counsel and vice president of pro-gun safety organization called Brady: United Against Gun Violence, Mr. Jonathan Lowy, said that the decision of the Court to not open any cases connected to the said Amendment is well-reasoned.

Lowy said in a statement that the decision of the Supreme Court is welcome, but they are vigilant that there remains an effort to reverse it and to undermine the country's progress in instituting gun safety measures and that those arguments have found sympathy with a lot of the Justices.

The Second Amendment has been the topic of debates for years, as the number of shootings in schools and public places had increased.