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The Supreme Court ruled today to extend gun rights to every state and city. What does that mean? (via Swampland)
In a sentence: It might eventually make it easier to buy a handgun. But for now, the most immediate impact will likely be more lawsuits.
McDonald v. Chicago, which was split 5-4 along conservative and liberal lines, expanded the right to bear arms under the Second Amendment to individuals in states and cities. It’s a victory for gun rights advocates, who fought against local and state controls on firearms. It’s a major blow to the city of Chicago, which had banned handguns for the past 28 years in one of the country’s strictest gun policies. Now the city’s policy will be reviewed and likely overturned.
However, any real change will take time. The decision does not immediately alter state or local laws–rather, it provides legal grounds for challenging gun measures across the country. In the decision, Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr. wrote that the government can restrict gun laws in certain instances, but those instances would be defined in future court cases. And those future court cases could take years.
(Read more on Swampland.)