The Second Amendment and States' Rights: A Thought Experiment

Abstract

Proponents of the so-called "collective right" model of the Second Amendment often assert that the right to bear arms exists only on the part of state militias, and not as any sort of individual right. Without addressing the merits of that claim, this Article examines the consequences of taking such a view seriously as a matter of constitutional law, and suggests that those consequences might be quite drastic.

Keywords: second amendment, states' rights, militia, firearms, guns, gun control