Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Challenge to DC Gun Ban

November 20, 2007 · Filed Under Gun Control, U.S. News

The U.S. Supreme Court announced on Tuesday that it will decide whether the ban on owning guns in the District of Columbia is constitutional, a pivotal case that could determine if the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the right to own firearms.

At issue is a 31-year-old Washington, D.C., law banning handguns and requiring that all shotguns and rifles be kept unloaded and either trigger-locked or disassembled at all times.

There is no exception for self-defense. “The Bill of Rights does not end at the District of Columbia’s borders, and it includes the right to keep and bear arms, said Alan Gura, lead counsel for the plaintiffs in Heller v. District of Columbia.