Topic 3.5 & Topic 3.6 | The Second Amendment and The Right to Bear Arms & Balancing Individual Freedom with Public Order and Safety

Early State Regulation of Guns

-> 4/13 states protected the right to bear arms AS PART OF A MILITIA

-> 1 state (PA) protected the right to bear arms AS AN INDIVIDUAL

-> many states barred gun usage within city limits and prevented groups deemed dangerous from having guns.

->i.e African Americans, Catholics etc.

The Second Amendment

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

The National Firearms Act

-> imposed taxes on gun manufacturers, restricted the sale of certain high risk weapons, and required certain weapons to be registered

-> challenged and upheld by SCOTUS

Gun Control Act of 1968

Ended mail-order sales of all firearms and ammunition and banned the sale of guns to felons, fugitives, illegal drug users, people with mental illness, and those dishonorably discharged from the military.

The Brady Bill (Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act)

Law passed in 1993 requiring a waiting period on sales of handguns, along with a criminal background check on the buyer.

-> expired in 1998 but influenced the National Instant Criminal Background Check System

District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)

Ruled the 2nd Amendment protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for lawful, private use (Roberts Court)

-> see quizlet

The Eighth Amendment

"Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."

Capital Punishment

The death penalty

-> it was allowed at the time of ratification but there is debate about whether or not it is cruel and unusual

Furman v. Georgia (1972) and Gregg v. Georgia (1976)

in Furman v. Georgia, SCOTUS ruled that the death penalty was cruel and unusual resulting in its suspension. In Gregg v. Georgia (1976), SCOTUS began reinstating the death penalty as states restructured their sentencing guidelines

Guantanamo Bay

Suspected terrorists were sent to detention facilities in Guantanamo Bay after the September 11th attacks. Officials in the Bush Administration believed that interrogations outside of U.S. borders would be able to proceed with less constitutional restrictions

The "Torture Memo"

In August 2002, The Bush Administration's Office of Legal Counsel defined torture as Severe pain or suffering equivalent to serious physical injury, organ failure, impairment of bodily functions or even death.

-> under this criteria, suspected terrorists were tortured by methods such as waterboarding

The Fourth Amendment

Right to privacy. Officials need warrants supported by probable cause to search and seize property.

-> warrants will explicitly state what is being seized and the places that are being searched

Metadata and the PATRIOT Act

The PATRIOT Act expanded the government's power over electronic surveillance and an executive order from President Bush allowed the executive Branch to secretly contact telecommunications companies to collect metadata information