Second Amendment: Not Constitutional Dysfunction, But Necessary Safeguard

15 Pages Posted: 13 Jun 2019

Date Written: 2014

Abstract

When Jim Fleming asked me to participate in this Symposium, and more specifically to be part of the Second Amendment panel, I must confess that I was a bit puzzled. There are many parts of our political and constitutional system that are arguably dysfunctional, meaning that our late-eighteenth century Constitution prevents the achievement of policy results that are desirable in our early-twenty-first century present. I do not see, however, the Second Amendment as one of those constitutional features. As a result, this Essay challenges two assumptions: first, that the Second Amendment historically has provided much of a barrier to a desirable policy result, radical gun control or perhaps more accurately gun prohibition; and second, that such a result is indeed desirable.

Keywords: Second Amendment, Militia, District of Columbia v. Heller, "right to bear arms", Gun control

JEL Classification: K14, K00

Suggested Citation

Cottrol, Robert J., Second Amendment: Not Constitutional Dysfunction, But Necessary Safeguard (2014). Robert J. Cottrol, Second Amendment: Not Constitutional Dysfunction but Necessary Safeguard, 94 B.U. L. Rev. 835 (2014)., GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2019-30, GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2019-30, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3403105 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3403105

Robert J. Cottrol (Contact Author)

The George Washington University ( email )

2000 H Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20052
United States
202-994-5023 (Phone)
Not available (Fax)

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