Gunreference1
11-06-2010, 04:31 PM
Ammunition Ban (With Affirmative Defense for Properly Registered Gun Owners) Violates Second Amendment
Eugene Volokh • November 4, 2010 6:55 pm
From Herrington v. United States, decided today by D.C.‘s highest court (the D.C. Court of Appeals):
Appellant Kevin Herrington was convicted in 2006 of unlawful possession of ammunition (UA), in violation of D.C. Code § 7–2506.01 (2001) (now § 7–2506.01(a) (Supp. 2010)). His conviction was based solely on evidence that he possessed handgun ammunition in his home....
What is now subsection (a) of D.C. Code § 7–2506.01 provides as follows:
No person shall possess ammunition in the District of Columbia unless: ...
(3) He is the holder of the valid registration certificate for a firearm of the same gauge or caliber as the ammunition he possesses; except, that no such person shall possess restricted pistol bullets; ...
[F]rom the Court’s reasoning [in Heller], it logically follows that the right to keep and bear arms extends to the possession of handgun ammunition in the home; for if such possession could be banned (and not simply regulated), that would make it “impossible for citizens to use [their handguns] for the core lawful purpose of self-defense.” By the same token, given the obvious connection between handgun ammunition and the right protected by the Second Amendment, we are hard-pressed to see how a flat ban on the possession of such ammunition in the home could survive heightened scrutiny of any kind. We therefore conclude that the Second Amendment guarantees a right to possess ammunition in the home that is coextensive with the right to possess a usable handgun there. The government has not taken issue with that conclusion....
To read the rest of the story click the link below.
http://volokh.com/2010/11/04/d-c-s-highest-court-holds-ammunition-ban-violates-second-amendment/
Steve
Eugene Volokh • November 4, 2010 6:55 pm
From Herrington v. United States, decided today by D.C.‘s highest court (the D.C. Court of Appeals):
Appellant Kevin Herrington was convicted in 2006 of unlawful possession of ammunition (UA), in violation of D.C. Code § 7–2506.01 (2001) (now § 7–2506.01(a) (Supp. 2010)). His conviction was based solely on evidence that he possessed handgun ammunition in his home....
What is now subsection (a) of D.C. Code § 7–2506.01 provides as follows:
No person shall possess ammunition in the District of Columbia unless: ...
(3) He is the holder of the valid registration certificate for a firearm of the same gauge or caliber as the ammunition he possesses; except, that no such person shall possess restricted pistol bullets; ...
[F]rom the Court’s reasoning [in Heller], it logically follows that the right to keep and bear arms extends to the possession of handgun ammunition in the home; for if such possession could be banned (and not simply regulated), that would make it “impossible for citizens to use [their handguns] for the core lawful purpose of self-defense.” By the same token, given the obvious connection between handgun ammunition and the right protected by the Second Amendment, we are hard-pressed to see how a flat ban on the possession of such ammunition in the home could survive heightened scrutiny of any kind. We therefore conclude that the Second Amendment guarantees a right to possess ammunition in the home that is coextensive with the right to possess a usable handgun there. The government has not taken issue with that conclusion....
To read the rest of the story click the link below.
http://volokh.com/2010/11/04/d-c-s-highest-court-holds-ammunition-ban-violates-second-amendment/
Steve