McDonald v. Chicago

McDonald v. Chicago

Co-Author, along with Don Kilmer, of Amicus Brief filed on behalf of the Nordyke v. King Appellants, Madison Society, and Golden State Second Amendment Council  on the Standard of Review.

Summary:

At the Supreme Court the 7th circuit decision was reversed and remanded. The opinion of the Court, written for the majority by Justice Alito, states in relevant part. (Page 8.)

We have previously held that most of the provisions of the Bill of Rights apply with full force to both the Federal Government and the  States. Applying the standard that is well established in our case law, we hold that the Second Amendment right is fully applicable to the States.

The case went to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit with two issues:

1. Is the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms incorporated as against the states pursuant to either the
Privileges or Immunities or Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment? 

2. Do Chicago ordinances banning handguns, requiring annual re-registration of guns, mandating that guns be registered prior totheir possession within city limits, and permanently prohibitingthe ownership of any particular gun whose registration lapses,violate Plaintiffs’ rights to arms and to equal protection?

Status

June 28, 2010 – the SCOTUS opinion in .PDF is here.

March 2, 2010 – The transcript for the oral arguments is here (PDF).

Nov 30, 2009 – Oral arguments set for Tuesday, March 2, 2010 at 10:00 AM.

Nov 20, 2009 Case filings are available here.

  • September 30 2009: SCOTUS granted certiorari for McDonald.
  • July 6, 2009 California/Attorney General Brown filed an Amicus petition urging incorporation of the 2nd Amendment
  • June 9, 2009 – petition for certiorari filed for McDonald v. Chicago.
The three cases were related, but not consoli-dated, in the District Court. Petitioners and the related case plaintiffs appealed the District Court’s decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, which consolidated the appeals. The plaintiffs in the related cases, other than Anthony Burton, have separately petitioned for certiorari. Sup. Ct. Rule 12.4.
  • NRA v City of Chicago: June 3, 2009, NRA petitioned for certiorari to the US Supreme Court.
  • The court issued its opinion June 2, just 1 week after oral arguments, NRA v Chicago, affirming the lower court decision.
  • Oral arguments were held Tuesday, May 26, 2009. An MP3 of the oral argument in front of Posner, Easterbrook, and Bauer is available from the Seventh Circuit’s website.

Calguns Discussion Threads

NRA’s petition of the 7th’s Chicago case vs the 9th taking Nordyke en banc

NRA petitions SCOTUS for Cert in Chicago Gun Case

External Resources