In McDonald v. City of Chicago, the most important Second Amendment legal case since D.C. v. Heller, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution applies to States and local governments. This will allow plaintiffs to proceed with their legal challenge to a Chicago law banning handgun possession. Justice Alito wrote the High Court’s 5-4 decision.
In making this ruling, the High Court held that the Second Amendment applies to actions of State and local governments under the incorporation doctrine derived from the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice Thomas offered a well-reasoned concurring opinion arguing that the “Privileges and Immunities” Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment also demands that State and municipal governments not abridge citizens’ Second Amendment rights.
Now State and Municipal Laws Can Be Challenged on Second Amendment Grounds
In a decision written by Justice Alito, the Supreme Court ruled the individual right to keep and bear arms protected by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution applies to states and local governments. The court split along ideological lines in voting 5 to 4 to support the right of individuals to own handguns for self protection. The Second Amendment now carries “full sway” over state and municipal actions, as do most of the other protections enumerated in the Bill of Rights. In applying the Second Amendment to state action, the Court followed a familiar blueprint under which other rights have been applied to the states by virtue of the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The case before the Court, McDonald v. City of Chicago, was filed in 2008 a day after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in District of Columbia v. Heller — in which the high court reaffirmed that the Second Amendment protects an “individual” right to keep and bear arms. The Heller decision, however, did not reach the question of whether the Second Amendment also applied to the states.
Immediately after Heller, several Chicago residents, including retired maintenance worker Otis McDonald, filed a federal lawsuit challenging the city’s long-standing gun ban. The Chicago-based federal courts ruled that the Second Amendment did not apply to the states and local governments, setting the stage for the Supreme Court to decide the question it left unanswered in its Heller decision.
On hearing today’s decision, Plaintiff Otis McDonald thanked the Justices: “for having the courage to right a wrong, which has impacted many lives long ago and will protect lives for many years to come.”
Steve Sanetti, President of the NSSF, which filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of McDonald, added: “Today’s ruling is a victory for freedom and liberty. All law-abiding Americans, no matter whether they live in a big city like Chicago or in rural Wyoming, have the same Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Constitutional rights don’t stop at state or city borders. Cities like Chicago and New York and states like California must now respect the Second Amendment.”
Credit: Thanks to German Salazar, Esq. for sourcing the text of the Supreme Court’s decision.
We are just three weeks from the start of the 2010 National Rifle and Pistol Championships at Camp Perry, Ohio. The National Championships, which have been held since 1907, draw more rifle and pistol competitors than any other shooting match in the Americas. The physical “playing field” is impressive — Camp Perry, situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, boasts the largest outdoor rifle range in the world.
The NRA’s Competitive Shooting Division has just released a “Welcome to Camp Perry” video, which covers the history of the National Championships along with pistol, smallbore rifle, and highpower rifle disciplines. This entertaining, professionally-made video shows the diversity of the competitions and the overall scale of this big, annual event. If you watch carefully, you’ll see cameos by champions such as Carl Bernosky. The video is highly recommended….
Registration, Programs and Entry Cards
If you want to compete at Camp Perry, it’s easy to register. Simply CLICK HERE to REGISTER ONLINE.
Note: Programs and entry cards for 2010 will only be mailed to those individuals who did not register online in 2009. Those who registered online may again do so for 2010 or they may request that a program and entry packet be sent to them. All others must request a copy of the National Matches Program by writing to:
Why is it vital to get more women involved in the shooting sports? Consider this: in recent state and federal elections there has been a significant gender gap in voting patterns. Compared to men, a much higher percentage of women (particularly unmarried women) vote for liberal anti-gun candidates. For example, 56 percent of women voted for Obama versus 49 percent of men. In recent years, anti-gun politicians have relied on this gender gap to secure electoral victories. If we want to reverse this trend, we need to increase the number of women who look favorably on Second Amendment rights and the shooting sports.
That’s why we were pleased to learn about a milestone reached by the NRA’s Women on Target (WOT) program which runs instructional shooting clinics for women. Women on Target Clinic Coordinator Elizabeth Hellmann recently revealed that the Women on Target program has passed the 50K mark: “As of [6/9/2010], more than 50,000 women have attended clinics… Please raise your coffee mugs and join me in saying, ‘Here’s to the next 50,000 happy customers!'”
The First Annual NRA National Gun Collectors Show & Conference was held in Nashville, TN, in 1996, and quickly assumed the title of “The Finest Gun Collectors Show in the Country”. The show is a program of the NRA’s National Firearms Museum. This year, the Museum has announced that the 15th Annual NRA National Gun Collectors Show & Conference will be held July 23-25 in Kansas City, Missouri.
At Collectors Show in Kansas City, there will be numerous awards handed out, including over $11,000 in cash prizes for the best exhibits. The event, which is open to the public, is hosted by the Missouri Valley Arms Collectors Association (MVACA) at the K.C.I. Expo Center, 11730 N. Ambassador, Kansas City, MO 64195. If you wish to be an exhibitor, contact MVACA Show Director Chuck Samuel at (913) 649-4248 ASAP. Sale/Trade tables are $90.00, while “Display-only” tables are $55.00 for 3 days. CLICK HERE for show information including Expo Center Map.
The NRA Blog has complete coverage of the 2010 Bianchi Cup, held this week at the Green Valley Rifle & Pistol Club in Columbia, MO. The Bianchi Cup is one of the most prestigious handgun competitions on the planet. This year, the 32nd Annual MidwayUSA/NRA Bianchi Cup features over 200 of the best pistol and revolver shooters in the world, from the USA and six other countries.
The match continues through Saturday, May 29th, but results from the first two days of competition are available on the NRA Blog. NRA Media Relations has also posted a collection of 2010 Bianchi Cup photos online. CLICK HERE to view Bianchi Cup Photo Gallery.
Musician Ted Nugent wowed the crowd at the 139th Annual Meetings & Exhibits in Charlotte, NC. Nugent offered some great advice on how to bring more folks into the shooting sports and how to change the attitudes of Americans who disapprove of guns and recreational shooting.
Nugent Says “Fix” the Anti-Gunners
“Fix them”, Nugent said. “You have a friend that doesn’t like guns? Spend an afternoon with them at the range. Your wife doesn’t like hunting? Take her to the woods until she lands her first deer. To paraphrase Uncle Ted, there’s no one out there who can’t be saved, we just have to fix them.” We like Nugent’s simple, pro-active strategies….
“[Nugent] was spectacular,” said an NRA member from New York. “Maybe more raw than some were expecting, but hey – that’s Ted. Might not like all the words, but the message is always on target.”
Bringing people to their feet time and again, The Nuge wrapped up the event with a handful of tunes and a plea for those who protect and serve. Be they firemen, policeman, or soliders, you should treat them. Treat them to an NRA membership. Treat them to a meal. Treat them to anything and everything because these are the people who protect our lives and freedoms so we should do everything within our power to protect them.
At the NRA Annual Meeting in Charlotte, NC, Austrian pistol-maker Glock Gesellschaft mbH donated over $115,000 in cash and materials to the NRA and its programs. $50K went to the NRA directly, while Glock made separate donations of $50,000 to the NRA Whittington Center and $15,000 to the NRA Whittington Center Adventure Camp.
Located in Raton, NM, the Whittington Center is an important venue for competitive shooting. Every year it hosts major championships including the Spirit of America match. We tip our hat to Glock, particularly for its generous donation to the Whittington Center. Glock’s contributions will help the Whittington Center maintain and upgrade its range facilities, along with expanding its training and youth programs.
The 2010 NRA Annual Meeting and Exhibits will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina May 14th – May 16th. If you can’t make it to Charlotte, tune in to Tom Gresham’s Gun Talk® Radio this Saturday. Tom will broadcast LIVE from the NRA Show (at the Charlotte Convention Center) on Saturday, May 15 from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM Eastern. Gresham will deliver his radio show from the Springfield Armory booth, #1803. All NRA Meeting attendees are welcome to stop by the booth and “watch” the radio show.
Guests will include Springfield Armory’s Rob Leatham with a big announcement, Mossberg, Corbon, Armed Citizens Network, Viridian Green Laser, and Hodgdon Powder. Tom Gresham’s Gun Talk Radio is in its 15th year of national syndication and runs on 94 stations, plus SIRIUS XM Satellite Radio. Podcast versions of Gun Talk shows are available through Apple iTunes or the Gun Talk Archive.
Open Range Day in Phoenix, AZ is a special NRA program providing shooting opportunities for persons with disabilities. Under the direction of Vanessa Ross, NRA Disabled Shooting Services Manager, the 2d Annual Open Range Day was a great success. Art Merrill, a freelance writer for Shooting Illustrated, provides this on-the-spot report from Phoenix’s Ben Avery Shooting Facility.
Open Range Day Report (by Art Merrill)
Vanessa’s safety briefing Saturday morning was the no-nonsense pronouncement we’re used to hearing from rangemasters – except for the “sip & puff” part: “Always always always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction! Keep your finger away from the trigger until you’re ready to shoot. If you’re using the sip & puff trigger mechanism, don’t put it your mouth ’til you’re ready to shoot. If you need help, if you have a question, don’t be stubborn – ask a volunteer.”
Indoor Air Rifle Shooting Popular
The air rifles appealed to a lot of shooters today, and not just because it was indoors, sheltered from the 95-degree desert spring. Every shooter enjoys hitting reactive targets, in this case, air rifle metallic silhouette targets. But there are other reasons, as well: “I don’t like loud bangs,” Ashleigh Justice said. “I liked the .22 pistol, but the .38 was too much.”
Ashleigh had never shot a firearm before today. What motivated her to come out to Open Range Day? “I was afraid of guns. I wanted to get over it,” she said. “My husband shoots and I was tired of the anxiety I felt around guns.” Beyond that, however, was a desire to push the envelope of her disability to achieve something more: “I want to be good at something that takes skill more than physical ability”, she said. Looks like she found it: she, too came away from the firing line talking about the possibility of a regular air rifle competition.
Shooting Provides Important Challenge
For Mike Tagliapetra, it’s all about challenge. You can feel it in his handshake even before he talks about competing in marathons and even a triathlon – using his wheelchair. Mike’s motivation, a quote from writer Ella Wheeler Wilcox, is boldly emblazoned on his business card: “There is no chance, no destiny, no fate that can hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.”
Open Range Day is winding down now, and the shooters are all going home. They had different motivations for being here and yet, because every participant said they want to return again next year. Something about the shooting sports is satisfying all of their motives. If there’s a common denominator to these motives, it’s the desire for challenge and the satisfaction of success – and empowerment – that comes from it. In the shooting sports, yes, there’s only one match winner; but every time we approach the firing line we are competing, not only against others, but also with ourselves to accomplish our personal best.
Contributions from many businesses made Open Range Day possible. Sponsors included: Birchwood Casey (targets), Colt (firearms), Davidson’s (Weatherby shotguns), Kowa (spotting scopes), Lapua (ammo), Pyramid Air (pellets), Ruger (firearms), Savage Arms (rifles), White Flyer (trap targets), and Winchester (ammo). Symbius Medical catered lunch, and Arizona’s Game & Fish Department made its world-class facility available for the event.
The NRA Annual Meeting & Exhibits in Charlotte, NC is less than two weeks away. This combination membership convention and trade show, co-sponsored by MidwayUSA, will be held May 14-16, 2010 at the Charlotte Convention Center, with some events slated for the Time Warner Cable Arena. All NRA members are welcome to attend. CLICK HERE for NRA Annual Meeting Schedule of Events.
Along with the exhibits, the NRA Meeting will feature an Antique Guns & Gold Showcase, a Firearms Law Seminar, and the ever-popular NRA-ILA Dinner and Auction. PyramidAir will also operate an AirGun range in the Convention center if you want to exercise your trigger finger.
In McDonald v. City of Chicago, the most important Second Amendment legal case since D.C. v. Heller, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution applies to States and local governments. This will allow plaintiffs to proceed with their legal challenge to a Chicago law banning handgun possession. Justice Alito wrote the High Court’s 5-4 decision.
We are just three weeks from the start of the 2010 National Rifle and Pistol Championships at Camp Perry, Ohio. The National Championships, which have been held since 1907, draw more rifle and pistol competitors than any other shooting match in the Americas. The physical “playing field” is impressive — Camp Perry, situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, boasts the largest outdoor rifle range in the world.
Registration, Programs and Entry Cards
Why is it vital to get more women involved in the shooting sports? Consider this: in recent state and federal elections there has been a significant 
That’s why we were pleased to learn about a milestone reached by the NRA’s 
The 
Musician Ted Nugent wowed the crowd at the 139th Annual Meetings & Exhibits in Charlotte, NC. Nugent offered some great advice on how to bring more folks into the shooting sports and how to change the attitudes of Americans who disapprove of guns and recreational shooting.
Open Range Day in Phoenix, AZ is a special NRA program providing shooting opportunities for persons with disabilities. Under the direction of Vanessa Ross, NRA Disabled Shooting Services Manager, the 2d Annual Open Range Day was a great success. Art Merrill, a freelance writer for 
Shooting Provides Important Challenge
ATK & Alliant/CCI/RCBS (booth 1403)
