In the 2007 Term of the Supreme Court, the Court ruled 5 to 4 in DC v Heller that the II Amendment means what is says and that the DC gun control laws were an infringement on the rights of individuals to “keep and bear arms.” In the next term of the court, which commences on Monday, the court will hear arguments “is “[w]hether the Second Amendment is incorporated into the Due Process Clause or the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment so as to be applicable to the States, thereby invalidating ordinances prohibiting possession of handguns in the home.’” Here is a link to the Washington Independent which provides good background on the case.
Incorporation is a doctrine in which the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution is applicable to the states through the XIV Amendment. The late Justice Hugo Black attempted to get the Court to rule that this was case, however he was never able to get the five votes necessary for full incorporation although the Court has selectively incorporated various rights found in the Bill of Rights.
Stay tuned as this is a very important case. Even though we have a new Justice, the calculus of the court has not changed.
