Landmark Supreme Court case concerning gun control to be discussed at ONU

Richard Heller, the plaintiff in the U.S. Supreme Court decision that said the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to possess a gun, will discuss the landmark case, District of Columbia vs. Heller, in the Ohio Northern University Pettit College of Law’s Large Moot Court room on Friday, March 15, at 12:15 p.m.

The event is free and open to the public.

In 2008, Heller challenged, on Second Amendment grounds, the District of Columbia’s law banning virtually all handguns. The U.S. Supreme Court agreed with Heller, finding the ban unconstitutional and holding that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to keep suitable weapons at home for self-defense unconnected to militia service.

The U.S. Supreme Court decision did not address the question of whether the Second Amendment extends beyond federal property to the states. It was the first Supreme Court case in United States history to decide whether the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to keep and bear arms for self-defense.

Also involved in the discussion will be attorney James P. Maloney, who is a National Rifle Association volunteer coordinator and leader of the Buckeye Firearm Association, and Bruce French, an ONU professor of law who had a role in drafting the District of Columbia gun control statute while he worked with the Council of the District of Columbia.

Published: Mon, 03/11/2013 - 10:09am