Source: http://dave-kopel.com/2dAmendment.htm
Timestamp: 2019-08-21 09:01:13
Document Index: 264147792

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 3', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 3', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 3']

Second Amendment policy issues, Dave Kopel
Right to Arms: USA
Kopel has "single-handedly...changed the gun debate in the United States." John Fund, Wall Street Journal, speech at the Gun Rights Policy Conference, Crystal City, Virginia, September 2004.
I. Carrying handguns. Subtopics: Law reviews. Briefs. Interstate carry. Armed pilots. Parks and Churches. Schools and colleges. Other articles.
II. Prohibition of arms. Subtopics: Inexpensive guns. Self-loading guns. All guns. Handguns. "Plastic guns". Fifty caliber Guns. Machine guns. Ammunition. Knives. Other arms and accouterments, magazines.
III. Juvenile justice. Subtopics: Schools and Colleges. Censorship at schools. Zero tolerance. Columbine. Gun Safety/Consumer Products/Storage/Lock Laws/"Smart" Guns/Accidents. Federal Legislation. Denver Laws.
IV. Particular gun controls. Subtopics: State and local gun laws. "Buybacks". Gun rationing/"One gun a month". Gun shows. National Instant Check System. Registration of guns and gun owners. Waiting Periods.
V. Other Gun Issues. Subtopics: Book reviews. Ballistic "Fingerprinting." BATFE and Gun Traces. Burglary. Culture and sociology. Public health/Medicine/Psychology. Women. General/miscellaneous.
Firearms Topics on Other Pages:
Page on Second Amendment law, history and politics.
I. Supreme Court. Subtopics: McDonald v. Chicago. District of Columbia v. Heller. Other Supreme Court cases. Supreme Court Justices, and other judges.
II. Other Courts. Subtopics: Lower federal courts. Emerson case. State Constitutions and cases.
III. History and Philosophy. Subtopics: Legal History. Early America. Founding Era. Madison. 19th century. Civil War and Civil Rights. Bellesiles fraud. Philosophy
IV. Politics and Elections. Subtopics: The Age of Obama. 2008 Election. 2006 Election. 2003-04 Elections. 2002 Election and Politics. 2000 Election. Earlier Elections.
V. Activism. Anti-gun groups and individuals. Pro-gun groups and individuals. Other topics.
Page on Foreign gun control. Subtopics: Africa. Ancient Greece and Rome. Australia. Canada. Eastern Europe. Germany. Great Britain. Hungary. Israel. Italy. Jamaica. Japan. New Zealand. Poland. Switzerland. United Nations.
Archives for Kopel's Second Amendment Project e-mail newsletter, 1998-2011.
Trump Must Not Break His Promises to Gun-Rights Supporters. He is following in the footsteps of George H. W. Bush, who paid the price for his betrayal. National Review Online. Aug. 16, 2019.
The Second Amendment Rights of Young Adults. 43 Southern Illinois University Law Journal 495 (2019). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.
The 'Sensitive Places' Doctrine: Locational Limits on the Right to Bear Arms. 13 Charleston Law Review 205 (2018).
RMGO v. Polis. No. 2018SC817. June 10, 2019. Colorado Supreme Court. Amicus brief of Colorado Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association, 32 County Sheriffs, and the Independence Institute. The ban on magazines over 15 rounds harms public safety and law enforcement. Motion for leave to file amicus brief.
Subtopics: Law reviews. Briefs. Interstate carry. Armed pilots. Parks and Churches. Schools and colleges. Other articles.
Pretend "Gun-free" School Zones: A Deadly Legal Fiction. 42 Connecticut Law Review 515 (2009). Cited in Students for Concealed Carry on Campus v. Regents of University of Colorado (Colo. App. 2010).
The Licensing of Concealed Handguns for Lawful Protection: Support from Five State Supreme Courts. Analyzes recent decisions in New Mexico, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Rhode Island. 68 Albany Law Review 305 (2005).
Concealed Handgun Permits. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder on the basics of creating a concealed handgun permit system. Jan. 14, 1999.
Kopel amicus brief for the County Sheriffs of Colorado in Students for Concealed Carry on Campus v. Regents of the University of Colorado (Colo. Sup. Ct.).
Bonidy v. United States: The Second Amendment at the post office. Analysis of challenge to gun ban in post offices and parking lots. Washington Post. Oct. 2, 2014.
Moore v. Madigan, key points. Volokh.com. Dec. 11, 2012. Kopel's The Second Amendment in the Nineteenth Century cited by the majority. Kopel's article Right to Arms in the Living Constitution cited by the dissent.
NRATV. Dana Loesch Relentless. Oct. 3, 2018. Gun Control Groups Pile on to Overturn Open Carry Win. Ninth Circuit en banc petition against right to bear arms in Hawaii.
Ninth Circuit strikes Hawaii law that only security guards may get handgun carry permits. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. July 23, 2018.
NRA News. Cam & Company. July 23, 2018. 9th Circuit Rules There is Right to Open Carry.
Peruta v. San Diego, analyzed. Washington Post. June 11, 2016. Archived on Reason, Volokh Conspiracy.
Peruta v. San Diego. April 30, 2015. En banc rehearing before the 9th Circuit. Amicus brief for the International Law Enforcement Educators & Trainers Association. Explains the empirical evidence showing that licensed handgun carry strengthens public safety.
Amicus brief for the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, and the Independence Institute, in Peruta v. San Diego (9th Circuit, 3-judge panel, 2011). Details why the carrying of an unloaded handgun--which can only be loaded under "imminent" threat--is insufficient to effectuate the constitutional right of armed self-defense. Also details police interests in encouraging concealed carry rather than open carry. Includes numerous short videos to illustrate the brief's descriptions of how guns are loaded, and how they are deployed in an emergency.
Amicus brief in Peruta v. San Diego. (Southern District, Calif.). Challenging sheriff's policy of denying concealed carry permits to almost everyone.
Ninth Circuit strikes California's restrictive rule against licensed carry of handguns. The Ninth Circuit's decision in Peruta v. San Diego affirms the right of law-abiding citizens to carry handguns for lawful protection in public. Washington Post. Feb. 13, 2014.
A Fault Line in California. One of the biggest Second Amendment court victories ever was recently won in California, and the National Rifle Association was there every step of the way. America's 1st Freedom. May 2014.
D.C. Circuit upholds right to bear arms for D.C. residents. Washington Post. July 25, 2017.
English legal history and the right to carry arms. Washington Post. Oct. 31, 2015. English law in the 17th and 18th centuries allowed the peaceable carry of arms, and forbade carry in a deliberately terrifying manner. Discussion Kopel's amicus brief in Wrenn v. District of Columbia.
Amicus brief on history of right to carry, in Wrenn v. DC. In D.C. Circuit case, legal historians' amicus brief explains that peaceable arms carrying was legal and common in Early America and in the 19th century. Washington Post. Oct. 9, 2015.
Wisconsin Sup. Ct. upholds ban on gun carrying in cars; dissent cites Kopel. Volokh.com. May 17, 2006.
Congress should use constitutional power to force states to honor gun rights. Why national right to carry reciprocity is a proper exercise of congressional power. The Hill. Dec. 31, 2017. With Joseph Greenlee.
NRA News. Cam & Company. Dec. 12, 2017. Pelosi fails Washington Post fact check on national carry reciprocity.
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. Dec. 6, 2017. Written testimony on: Bill to ban bump stocks and some gunsmithing. S 1916; Fix NICS Act, S. 2135; Bill to allow indefinite delays in background checks, S. 1923; interstate carry reciprocity, S. 446.
Kopel testimony before the U.S. House subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, regarding H.R. 822. September 13, 2011. The bill would set up a national system of interstate reciprocity for concealed handgun carry permits. Kopel's 24-page written testimony. Video of the subcommittee hearing. Cato Institute podcast with Kopel on the issue.
Poll shows public dissatisfied with Norman Mineta's Dept. of Transportation policies on airplane security. Volokh.com. May 21, 2002.
Why stun guns and air marshals are insufficient. Volokh.com. March 11, 2002.
Guns in Parks: The Hoplophobes' Travel Guide to the United States. The New Ledger. May 29, 2009.
Respecting States' Wishes. Short essay on the new law allowing guns in National Parks. New York Times, "Room for Debate". May 22, 2009.
See the section on schools below.
Growth of Right to Carry
The Long Hard Road to Freedom. How a new "shall issue" law in Illinois illustrates the long hard road to freedom. America's 1st Freedom. September 2013.
Nebraska is 40th state to enact Shall Issue licenses for defensive handgun carrying. Also discusses spread of Stand Your Ground laws. Volokh.com. April 1, 2006.
Licensed Carry Wins in Kansas. Plus analysis of other states. Volokh.com. March 24, 2006.
Right to Carry against mass killers
Hickenlooper's shots at law-abiding gun owners don't help. Concealed carries licensees save lives; Jeanne Assam saved a hundred at the New Life Church in 2007. (Colorado Springs) Gazette. Dec. 10, 2015. With Ari Armstrong.
President Obama signs three constructive gun measures. Prohibiting ban on lead ammunition; first step to right-to-carry for military personnel; sell surplus military handguns to the public. Washington Post. Dec. 10, 2015.
Planned Parenthood's Right to Bear Arms. Real Clear Policy. Dec. 3, 2015.
Other articles on carry
Will D.C. Carry? America's 1st Freedom. Oct. 2014. Discussion of Palmer v. D.C.
Unraveling Heller. Though District of Columbia v. Heller is part of the fabric of our Constitution, some lower court judges are finding ways to pick it apart. America's 1st Freedom, June 2011.
Could President Perry carry a gun? Definitely yes, since D.C.'s gun laws allowing carrying by any federal employee who is authorized to do so. Volokh Conspiracy. Aug 19, 2011.
Senate Bill 34: Concealed Carry in Colorado. Podcast Run Time: 00:12:48. MP3. April 6, 2007. What will Senate Bill 34 mean for the people of Colorado.
Gore's Privileged Gun Class. Government employees aren't superior to the governed. National Review Online. Oct.31, 2000.
Gore's Double Standard on Firearms. Gore believes the federal government should mandate that police carry off-duty in states where they don't live; but the federal government should forbid states to allow law-abiding residents to carry guns. Chronicles. Sept. 2000.
Rapists Like Gun Control. National Review Online, Apr. 14, 2000. What if Juanita Broaddrick had been carrying a gun? In italiano.
Concealed Carry Now. By Ari Armstrong. Sept. 15, 1999. Op-ed examines the concealed carry debate, in light of the 1999 murder of a woman and two men in a Grand Junction parking lot.
The Untold Triumph of Concealed-Carry Permits. Policy Review magazine. July/Aug. 1996. Reprinted in Tamara L. Roleff, ed. Gun Control. Opposing Viewpoints (Greenhaven Pr., 1997). In italiano.
Subtopics: Inexpensive guns. Self-loading guns. All guns. Handguns. "Plastic Guns". Fifty Caliber Guns. Machine Guns. Ammunition. Knives. Other arms.
Worman v. Healey. Aug. 29, 2018. Amicus brief for 11 law professors specializing in the Second Amendment, Cato Institute, Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, Jews for the Preservation Ownership, Independence Institute, and Millennial Policy Center. Massachusetts ban on common firearms and standard magazines violates Supreme Court precedent. Such arms have been traditional American arms since the 19th century. Cato Institute summary.
Kolbe v. Hogan. Amicus brief in support of cert. petition, in challenge to Maryland ban on common firearms and magazines. Amici are the National Sheriffs' Association, Cato Institute, Second Amendment Foundation, and Independence Institute. Attorneys are David Kopel, Randy Barnett, Joseph Greenlee, Ilya Shapiro. Aug. 21, 2017.
Colorado Attorney General reply brief in Robertson v. Denver. 1991 (Denver District Court).
Scholarly journals and monographs
The Costs and Consequences of Gun Control. Cato Institute Policy Analysis no. 784 (Dec. 1, 2015).
Rational Basis of "Assault Weapon" Prohibition. Even putting aside the Second Amendment, "assault weapon" bans are unconstitutional because the guns banned are in no rational way different from other guns. 20 Journal of Contemporary Law 381 (1994).
Sneak Attack on Washington State. America's 1st Freedom. Sept. 2018.
Deerfield, Illinois, gun confiscation law is blocked by state court. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. June 13, 2018.
Gun Control Won't Stop Crime. America's 1st Freedom. May 2018. Why NRA is rightly opposes gun bans, the destruction of the civil rights of young adults, and universal gun registration.
The First "Assault Weapon": Banning Guns Based on "Style" Rather than Function. Reason.com. Mar. 5, 2018.
The History of the 'Assault Weapon' Hoax. Part 1: The Crime that Started it All. A 1989 shooting at a Cal. schoolyard began the national "assault weapon" issue. It was a consequence of law enforcement failure. Reason.com. Mar. 2, 2018.
Kolbe v. Hogan: 4th Circuit requires strict scrutiny for Maryland ban on magazines and semiautomatics. Washington Post. Feb. 4, 2016.
The 2nd Circuit's second-class Second Amendment intermediate scrutiny. Washington Post. Oct. 23, 2015.
2nd Circuit upholds N.Y. and Conn. arms bans; contradicts Heller and McDonald. Washington Post. Oct. 23, 2015.
New Anti-Gun Strategies. National Review Online. Sept. 16, 2014. "Assault weapon" bans have proved very unpopular — but the anti-gun lobbies aren't giving up entirely.
The AR-15 And The Second Amendment: No Respect. It's the best-selling type of rifle in America today, yet the gun prohibition lobbies want to make it a crime for you to own one. America's 1st Freedom. April 2012.
The Mark of "C". While Anti-Gunners in Congress Hail Him as the New Zorro, President Calderón Takes a Swipe at American Gun Rights. America's 1st Freedom. August 2010.
"Large Capacity Clips" and Officer Safety. Volokh.com. May 12, 2005.
Police Show Legitimacy of Semi-automatics. Dave Kopel and Diane Nicholl. July 18, 1998.
"Assault Weapon" Ban Wouldn't Have Stopped Texas Massacre. The 1991 Killeen, Texas, murders. Minneapolis Star Tribune. Oct. 29, 1991.
Anti-Gun Laws Failed to Stop Littleton Killer. How gun prohibition advocates exploited of Eugene Thompson's 1989 rampage in Littleton with a stolen automatic M11 pistol. Colorado Springs Gazette. In italiano.
Dhimmitude and Disarmament. 18 George Mason University Civil Rights Law Journal305 (2008).
Guns, Germs, and Science. Critique of the medical case for gun prohibition. Delivered at the University of Oklahoma School of Public Health. Oct. 1994.
Short articles and audio
Gun ban for young adults would be wholly unconstitutional. The Hill. Mar. 13, 2018. with Joseph Greenlee.
Brown v. EMA casts doubt on the "weapons effect" justification for gun control. Supreme Court not impressed with research claiming that video games or guns make people violent. Volokh Conspiracy. June 27, 2011.
Prohibition Fever. National Review Online. Jan. 4, 2000. With Dr. Michael Brown. In italiano.
Will You Be Safer if Guns are Banned? Short piece for the International Society for Individual Liberty. Polski/Polish.
Congress Bans Gun Confiscation in Emergencies, 10/2/06. New Orleans Admits that Gun Confiscations Have No Legal Basis, 9/25/05. New Orleans Guns Should Be Returned Today, 9/13/05. New Orleans Gun Confiscation is Blatantly Illegal, 9/9/05. N.O. follow-up, 9/11/05. N.O. 2d follow-up. 9/11/05.
NRA News. Cam & Company. Aug. 7, 2018. Ninth Circuit upholds ban on new handgun models.
A Capital Crime. The District of Columbia's institutionalized history of incompetence, corruption and bigotry is the very reason for its prohibition of Second Amendment rights--and for its status as the murder capital of the United States. America's 1st Freedom. Sept. 2007.
Sticking to Our Guns. Legal Times. Dec. 6, 1993. Reply to an article by Stuart Taylor in favor of handgun prohibition.
The Long and the Short of the Handgun Debate. Sen. John Chafee's proposed handgun confiscation law. Washington Post. June 27, 1992
NRA News. Cam & Company. Aug. 13, 2018. The 1986 plastic gun panic.
The 1986 Plastic Gun Panic. How the gun control lobbies nearly tricked Congress into banning millions of ordinary guns. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Aug. 7, 2018.
The Cheney Glock-n-Spiel. Bush's Veep-in-waiting proved he won't be seduced by mindless gun lobbying. National Review Online. July 27, 2000.
Other Federal Appellate Judges on Machine Guns, 11/1/05.
Cheney's Cop-Killer Rap. If you can't handle the truth, be very afraid of W.'s running mate. National Review Online. July 31, 2000.
Britain’s Failed Weapons-Control Laws Show Why the Second Amendment Matters. National Review Online. August 28, 2018. With Vincent Harinam.
Vagueness challenge in Manhattan DA's use of gravity knives. New York District Attorney asserts that common folding knives are illegal "gravity knives." Washington Post. May 20, 2014.
Obama Does Not Like Knives (or Guns). The administration moves to a regulatory ban on 80% of folding knives. June 25, 2009. 9 minutes. MP3
Other Arms or Accouterments, Magazines
For the Colorado Sheriffs' partially successful fight against the Colorado magazine ban, all case filings are at coloradocuncase.org.
RMGO v. Hickenlooper (Colo. App. 2018). Amicus brief on behalf of Colorado Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association; Sheriffs Chad Day (Yuma County), Steve Reams (Weld), Shannon K. Byerly (Custer), and Sam Zordel (Prowers); and the Independence Institute. Why Colorado's magazine ban endangers public safety.
Duncan v. Becarra. 9th Circuit, Jan. 8, 2017. Amicus brief urges affirmance of district court decision against confiscation of standard capacity magazines. Addresses standard of review, and empirical evidence. On behalf of Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership, Independence Institute, and Millennial Policy Center. Co-authored with Joseph G.S. Greenlee.
Ninth Circuit Upholds Preliminary Injunction Against Magazine Confiscation in California. The courts continue to block a California law to confiscate magazines over 10 rounds. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. July 17, 2018.
Federal court enjoins California large-capacity magazine confiscation. Washington Post. June 30, 2017. Archived on Reason, Volokh Conspiracy.
The Hearing Protection Act and 'silencers'. Washington Post. June 20, 2017. Archived on Reason, Volokh Conspiracy.
What is a zoobow? Volokh.com. May 20, 2010.
Devil's Advocate with Jon Caldara. Dec. 22, 2017. Interstate right to carry reciprocity. Why bump stocks should be more stringently regulated.
III. Youth, Children, Schools
Subtopics: Schools and Colleges. Censorship at schools. Zero tolerance. Columbine. Gun Safety/Consumer Products/Storage/Lock Laws/"Smart" Guns/Accidents. Federal Legislation. Denver Laws.
Law reviews and monographs
History and Tradition in Modern Circuit Cases on the Second Amendment Rights of Young People. 43 Southern Illinois University Law Journal 199 (2018). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.
Unfair and Unconstitutional: The New Federal Gun Control and Juvenile Crime Proposals. June 3, 1999. Analyzes U.S. Senate Bill 254 (gun shows, juvenile gun possession, including wiretapping expansion, forfeiture expansion, and other issues).
Written testimony before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, Hearings on Criminal Street Gangs. April 23, 1997. Includes material about gun control, RICO, bullet-resistant vests, conspiracy statues, federalization of criminal law, and more.
7th Circuit strikes ban on target practice by minors, and near-ban on firing ranges. Washington Post. Jan. 19, 2017.
Handgun bans for persons under 21: A hidden problem in Everytown's ‘universal background checks'. Washington Post. Nov. 5, 2015.
Crime: The Inner City Crisis. The crime disaster in urban America, and how politicians use gun control to evade the difficulties of addressing the causes of poverty, alienation, and hopelessness.
D.C. City Council's False "Findings" of Facts on Firearms. Incorrect claims about accidents involving young males. Volokh.com 7/23/08.
Gun Play: What Kids Don't Know about Guns Can Kill Them. Reason. July 1993. Reprinted in Gun Control: Opposing Viewpoints (Greenhaven Pr., 1997).
Scary Tales About Kids and Guns. Fatal firearms accidents among children are at an all-time low, even as the per-capita gun supply rises. America's 1st Freedom. Feb. 2012.
Arming teachers can protect kids. (N.Y.) Daily News. Feb. 28, 2018. with Laura Carno.
Guns on university campuses: The Colorado experience. Washington Post. April 20, 2015.
Colorado Senate Rejects Gun Legislation. National Review Online, Apr. 12, 2000. Colorado Senate nixes ban on possession of guns by law-abiding adults at universities and schools.
Campus Conceal Carry Laws. What's the deal with conceal carry laws as it pertains to college campuses? iVoices.org podcast. Run Time:11:52. Mar. 6, 2009. MP3.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan. What his record as Superintendent of Chicago public schools indicates he might do on as Secretary of Education to promote restrictions of Second Amendment rights. Dave Kopel's Second Amendment Podcast. Feb. 20, 2009. MP3.
Armed Israeli teacher stops terrorist attack on high school. National Review Online, The Corner. May 29, 2002.
Sure, Blame the Gun. The Santee murders. National Review Online. Mar. 9, 2001. With Ari Armstrong. Reprinted in School Shootings: At Issue (Greenhaven Press, 2002).
Don't Let Schools off the Hook. The dos and don'ts of preventing juvenile violence. National Review Online. July 12, 2000. With Dr. Helen Smith, forensic psychologist.
A Principal and his Gun. How Vice Principal Joel Myrick used his handgun to stop the school shooter in Pearl, Mississippi. By Wayne Laugesen. Boulder Weekly, Oct. 1999.
Amicus brief in Newsom v. Albermarle (4th Circuit Court of Appeals). A middle school threatened to punish a student for wearing an NRA shooting sports camp t-shirt. The Independence Institute amicus brief argues that shooting sports are wholesome and promote good character, and that speech promoting shooting sports cannot rationally be censored in a public school. The Fourth Circuit ruled in favor of the student.
Montclair, N.J., school promotes gun prohibition, blocks pro-rights speech. NRO The Corner. May 11, 2002. (The school board later relented.)
Zero Good Sense. Zero tolerance. National Review Online. June 6, 2001. With Paul Gallant and Joanne Eisen. In italiano.
Gunning for the Kiddies. What kind of a "climate" has taken hold of society? National Review Online. Sept. 22, 2000. With Paul Gallant & Joanne Eisen.
Children use "finger guns," then school interrogates them about parental gun ownership. NRO The Corner. May 13, 2002.
What If We Had Taken Columbine Seriously? The political discourse since the killings last year has been foolish, escapist, and cowardly. The Weekly Standard, April 24, 2000. Cover story. Italiano: E se avessimo preso la Columbine seriamente?
School Safety. New York Post. April 20, 2000 (with Linda Gorman). Also in National Review Online, May 8, 2000.
Columbine cover-up. NRO The Corner. March 9, 2002.
Getting Columbine Right. More gun control wouldn't have stopped this tragedy. You're wrong, Al. National Review Online. Oct. 12, 2000.
Clinton Targets Guns Again: President's Politicking Won't Achieve Goal. Rocky Mountain News. May 2, 1999.
The Attack on Civil Liberties. Why the Columbine High murders should not be exploited to attack the First Amendment or the Second Amendment. By Ari Armstrong. April 30, 1999.
Making Schools Safe for Criminals. Gun control laws ensured that the teachers and students at Columbine High School would be defenseless. Denver Post, April 23, 1999. By Linda Gorman.
The Hill's Hidden Crime Agenda. Post-Columbine legislation. Cato Institute. Washington Times. June 15, 1999.
Treating Guns Like Consumer Products. 148 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 1701 (2000). Includes a detailed comparison of gun regulation to the regulation of automobiles and alcohol.
Smart Guns/Foolish Legislators. 34 Connecticut Law Review 157 (2001). With Cynthia Leonardatos and Paul Blackman.
Brady Center lawsuit to use "smart" gun mandate to trigger handgun ban in New Jersey. NJ lawsuit on "smart" guns report would ban handgun sales. Washington Post. May 22, 2014.
Smart Guns. "Smart guns" have almost no appeal to consumers, and New Jersey's smart gun mandate makes the problem worse. Washington Post. May 6, 2014.
Storage/locks
California gun lock law leads directly to murder of Carpenter family children. NRO The Corner. June 2, 2002.
Dangers of Mandatory Gun Locks. National Review Online. Mar. 22, 2000. In italiano.
Loaded Guns Can be Good for Kids. Cato Institute. June 3, 1999. With Eugene Volokh. Español. Italiano.
The Hidden Agenda Behind Gun Storage Laws. As demonstrated in Canada and Great Britain, such laws are used to make home defense impossible. The American Guardian. 1997.
Mandatory Gun Safety Classes Could Reduce Citizen's Safety. Commerce City Beacon. July 3, 1991.
Squirt Gun Bans Wont Stop Violent Crime: Denvers "Mr. Wilson laws" are Empty Shells. Analyzes 1993 Denver laws against weapons possession by juveniles. Independence Institute Issue Paper. 1993.
Subtopics: U.S., Colorado, Other States, and Local Gun Laws. Ballistic "Fingerprinting". "Buybacks". Gun Rationing/"One gun a month". Gun Shows. National Instant Check System. Registration of Guns and Gun Owners. Waiting Periods.
What if there were serious gun controls? The Hill. Nov. 8, 2017. With Joseph Greenlee.
The Virginia Compromise: Wins for gun rights and gun regulation. Washington Post. Feb. 10, 2016.
The Scam Artist. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's newest gun-prohibition group, Everytown for Gun Safety, has gotten off to a rough start. America's 1st Freedom. July 2014.
Should Congress revise our nation's gun laws? No. State gun laws do the job. Denver Post. July 29, 2012.
Newark Airport sued for abuse of person lawfully transporting a firearm, Volokh.com. 2/27/06.
Is it Illegal for David Letterman to Own a Gun? Volokh.com. 12/22/05.
Ohio Preempts All Local Gun Controls. Volokh.com. Dec. 12, 2006.
Self-defense and Stand Your Ground
Stand Your Ground had nothing to do with the Dunn verdict in Florida. Stand Your Ground played zero role in the Michael Dunn "loud music" case. Washington Post. Feb. 17, 2014.
Debunking the 'stand your ground' myth. Anti-gun advocates mislead on Trayvon case to erode right to self-defense. Washington Times, Apr. 2, 2012.
Florida's New Self-Defense Law. Volokh.com. May 19, 2005.
Ross Kaminsky Show. KHOW 630 AM radio. Red flag bill ripe for abuse. Kopel is on from 36:10 to 51:05. Feb. 21, 2019.
Testimony on Gun Bills at the Colorado State Capitol. March 4, 2013. Video of the testimony and Q & A are as follows: Universal Background Checks. 13 minutes. Magazine bans. 19 minutes. Fee for background checks. 6 minutes. Liability for manufacturers, sellers. 14 minutes. Concealed carry permit rules. 10 minutes.
Colorado Consensus on Gun Laws. Broadly supported post-Columbine reforms balance gun rights and gun control. National Review Online. July 26, 2012.
How Strict are U.S., Colorado, and Local Gun Control Laws? Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 12-1999. Aug. 1999. The paper examines the 20 weapons law violations perpetrated by the Columbine criminals. The Paper also examines current laws regarding gun shows, and explains that there is no "loophole" in current laws regarding gun shows.
Limited Preemption of Firearms Laws: A Good Step for Civil Rights. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder. Mar. 11, 2003.
Testimony on D.C. Council's proposed revision to the District's gun control laws. Argues against a provision which excessively discriminates against people with visual impairments. The testimony also critiques D.C.'s unusual system of long gun registration. Feb. 13, 2012.
Montana Firearms and the Interstate Commerce Clause. Volokh.com. April 15, 2009.
Foreword to Gun Laws of Montana (2003).
What's that Smell? Nearly everyone has heard of the corruption-plagued organization ACORN. Yet many gun owners are unaware of the organization's strong anti-gun activities and ties. America's 1st Freedom, Dec. 2009.
Should Gun Shows Be Outlawed? McCain Bill Does Much More than Impose Background Checks. Independence Institute, Issue Paper no. 1-2002. With Alan Korwin.
McCain Is a No Show on Guns. The Arizona senator's questionable commitment to Second Amendment rights. National Review Online. Oct. 16, 2000.
Gun Shows Under Attack. The phony claims against shows put forth by the gun prohibition lobbies. And the plans to outlaw privacy for firearms owners. The American Guardian, January 1999. Featured in an Al Gore television ad during the 2000 Democratic primaries.
Testimony before the U.S. Senate subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, Nov. 17, 2011, regarding S. 463. Senator Schumer's bill to vastly expand the number of people prohibited from owning or temporarily possessing a firearm. 29-page written testimony. Video of subcommittee hearing. Kopel's 5 minute prepared remarks begin at 72:41. At 103:40, there is a Q&A with Senator Grassley, with leads to follow-up questions with Senator Schumer, in which Kopel explains to Schumer what the Schumer bill actually does. Kopel discusses the bill on NRA News. Media coverage: NPR, ABC, Governing, Albany Times Union.
Sharing firearms for informal target shooting: Another legitimate activity outlawed by Everytown's ‘universal background checks'. Washington Post. Nov. 4, 2015.
Safe storage of firearms: The harms from Bloomberg's strange background check system. Washington Post. Nov. 3, 2015.
How Everytown's background check law impedes firearms safety training and self-defense. Washington Post. Nov. 2, 2015.
Washing-Con. America's 1st Freedom. Sept. 2014. How Michael Bloomberg is twisting the gun control debate in the Evergreen State.
How can we enact meaningful gun control? The Repartee. Debate with Adam Winkler. Part 1: Background checks. Part 2: Reading the Constitution. Part 3: Natural Rights. 2013-14.
The Problem Was With the Legislation. NY Times Room for Debate on the question, "If 90 percent of Americans support background checks but most senators don't, is the system broken?" New York Times. Apr. 18, 2013.
Schumer-Toomey gun bill deserves a committee hearing. The Daily Caller. Apr. 11, 2013.
Turning Gun Owners into Felons. A new bill would make it a crime to "transfer" your gun to a spouse for more than seven days. National Review. Apr. 5, 2013.
What Goes Around... The Blue Press. 1997. Misdemeanor domestic violence gun ban, and its application to police and the military.
D.C. gun registration law ruled partly unconstitutional. Federal appeals court declares that much of D.C.'s gun registration law violates the Second Amendment. Washington Post. Sept. 18, 2015.
Disaster Up North. Gun-control laws run amuck, with a billion dollar cost overrun in the gun registry. National Review Online. Dec. 12, 2002. With Gary Mauser. En français.
The Gore Gun Agenda. Al's ultimate objective would be to abolish all firearms privacy. National Review Online., May 5, 2000. Discussion of the secret report of the White House Working Group.
Civil Disobedience in Canada. National Review Online. Aug. 2, 2000. With Drs. Paul Gallant & Joanne Eisen. En français.
How Firearms Registration Works. It doesn't, in Canada. National Review Online. Dec. 7, 2000. With Gary Mauser. En français.
Brady Bill anniversary, and Clinton's phony story. Volokh.com. Nov. 30, 2005.
Gun Foes Should Tell the Whole Story. Phony claims that a waiting period would have stopped John Hinckley. Chicago Tribune, March 30, 1991.
Why Wait to Buy a Gun? What's wrong with the Brady Bill. Chicago Tribune. Sept. 12, 1988.
Subtopics: Book Reviews. BATFE and Gun Traces. Burglary. Culture and sociology. History. Public Health/Medicine/Psychology. Women. General/miscellaneous.
Childress Says, "The Second Amendment Saved Our Lives." NASCAR great describes the armed invasion of his home last year. America's 1st Freedom. Dec. 2018.
NRA News. Cam & Company. Nov. 27, 2018. "Second Amendment Saved Our Lives." Kopel discusses his new article about the armed invasion of the home of NASCAR great Richard Childress.
How's the Second Amendment Doing? A long-term perspective. Devils' Advocate with Jon Caldara. Colorado Public TV 12. Apr. 23, 2018.
TEDx Mile High. Understanding Guns. Panel with Kimberly Corban, Jay Breitlow, and Coni Sanders. Feb. 21, 2018.
Books from anti-gun activists
Gun Control Debate with Arnold Grossman. The Denver Press Club hosts a debate on the issue of gun control. Arnold Grossman, author of "One Nation Under Guns - An Essay on An American Epidemic," argues the pro-gun control case while David Kopel, co-editor of "Gun Control and Gun Rights: A Reader and Guide" speaks for the opposing side. The debate is moderated by Cynthia Hessin, executive producer of Rocky Mountain PBS. The debate was broadcast on C-Span's Book TV. C-Span video. The replay is produced by the Independence Institute's iVoices.org multimedia center; the on-line replay used the C-Span feed; the iVoices version occasionally pixelates the video. In addition, you can read Kopel's Book review of One Nation Under Guns: an Essay on an American Epidemic by Arnie Grossman. (Also note the shorter book review, listed above). Kopel dissects a book riddled with factual and legal errors, and which, unintentionally, reveals why the gun control movement in the United States has become such a failure in recent years.
Check the Footnotes. Skip Bellesiles. Read Halbrook. NRO Weekend, January 13-14, 2001. With Clayton Cramer. Book review of Freedmen, the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Right to Bear Arms, 1866-1876, by Stephen P. Halbrook.
Ten on the Second. Ten great books (plus some bonus recommendations) on the right to arms. America's 1st Freedom, March 2007.
Second Amendment Ammo. Recommended reading. Reason magazine, Dec. 2000. Reviews of More Guns, Less Crime; Guns: Who Should Have Them? And The Matchlock Gun (an award-winning children's book).
$100 Billion Mistake. Loose factoids sink books. Review of Gun Violence: The Real Costs By Philip J. Cook and Jens Ludwig (Oxford University Press). NRO Weekend, Aug. 25-26, 2001. With Paul Blackman.
It Isn't About Duck Hunting: The British Origins of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. Review of Joyce Malcolm's book To Keep and Bear Arms: The Origins of an Anglo-American Right. 96 Michigan Law Review 1333 (1995).
BATFE's Little Shop of Horrors. BATFE's reprehensible scam to ensnare unsuspecting people exposed. America's 1st Freedom. March 2014.
BATFE Director now needs Senate confirmation. Volokh.com. March 8, 2006.
Olofson case. Suppression hearing transcript. Discovery. Firearms Technology Branch report. Trial transcript: part 1, part 2, part 3.
When Must the Government Disclose Gun Owners' Names and Addresses? Preview of U.S. Supreme Court case Department of the Treasury v. City of Chicago. American Bar Association Preview of Supreme Court Cases, March 2003, pp. 289-93.
Lawmaking at the BATF. How the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms invents new gun law, by abuse of administrative authority. The American Guardian. October 1998.
Firearms Tracing Data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms: An Occasionally Useful Law Enforcement Tool, but a Poor Research Tool, 11 Criminal Justice Policy Review44 (Mar 2000). With Paul Blackman. Abstract: "The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (BATF) sometimes traces the history of firearms used in crime. Typically, the trace reveals the gun's history from its manufacture to its sale by a licensed retail firearms dealer. BATF traces occasionally have been a useful tool for investigating individual crimes. In recent years, however, some persons have attempted to use BATF trace data to study gun violence and evaluate firearms policies. There are severe limitations on the utility of the BATF data for criminological analysis. These limits include the relatively small number of crime guns that BATF traces, BATF's rules about what guns it will not even attempt to trace, and the limited information supplied by gun traces. The authors suggest that BATF trace figures are not a sound foundation for criminological research."
Clueless: The Misuse of BATF Firearms Tracing Data. From the Law Review of Michigan State University Detroit College of Law. PDF.
Do Federal Gun Traces Accurately Reflect Street Crime? Small Fraction of Guns Selected for National Trace may not be Typical of Ordinary Crime Guns. Independence Institute Issue Paper. 1993.
Lawyers, Guns, and Burglars. 43 Arizona Law Review345 (2001). Symposium issue.
A Divide Widened by Misunderstanding. Responding to the question, "What is it about gun policy that makes it such an emotional topic?" New York Times Room for Debate. Jan. 6, 2013.
Packing the Peace. Don't Underestimate the Deterrent Effect of an Armed Population. National Review Online, June 14, 2000. With Linda Gorman.
Media Bias in the Coverage of Gun Control: The Press Evaluates the Popular Culture. Examines biased media coverage in the 1970s of different polls on gun control and gun rights. Chapter in the book The Gun Culture and Its Enemies (William Tonso, ed.).
Polls: Anti-gun Propaganda. Certain pollsters who support repressive gun laws claim to have found increased public support for such laws. Are such polls accurate? Or are they typical of the manipulation of data which has long been the practice of pro-control pollsters? The American Guardian. 1997.
Why Reveal Who's Concealed? What possible motive could some arrogant anti-gun newspapers have for publishing the names of Right-to-Carry permit holders? America's 1st Freedom, May 2007. With Paul Gallant and Joanne D. Eisen.
You may feel some pressure. America's 1st Freedom. July 2015. Why are doctors asking you if you any guns at home? What will happen if you tell them it's none of their business?
How Your Tax Dollars Demonize Your Guns. Federal funding for a new study purporting to show that gun owners are more likely to be murdered. America's 1st Freedom. Jan. 2010.
Should Health Care Workers be able to Refuse Treatment to Gun Owners? Volokh.com. March 20, 2006.
Doctors and Guns. Virginia considers restricting doctors from forcing and anti-gun political agenda on their patients. Volokh.com. Feb. 28, 2006.
The Fallacy of 43 to 1". The all-time favorite statistic of the gun-prohibition lobby. National Review Online. Jan. 31, 2001. In italiano.
Firearms Deaths in Colorado. Issue Backgrounder 2001-D. With Diane Nicholl.
Editorial Board for Guns in American Society: An Encyclopedia of History, Politics, Culture, and the Law (ABC/Clio: 2002).
Trust the People: The Case Against Gun Control. Cato Institute, July 11, 1988, Policy Analysis no. 109 (monograph). Reprinted in 3 Journal on Firearms and Public Policy 77 (1990). German translation (Deutsche Übersetzung, Vertraue der Bevölkerung: Die Causa gegen Waffenverbote)
Debate: Has the right to bear arms outlived it usefulness? NPR Intelligence Squared. David Kopel & Eugene Volokh v. Alan Dershowitz & Sanford Levinson. 104 minutes. Nov. 21, 2013.
How Gun Control and Gun Rights Can Be Friends. Kopel describes the history of gun rights and gun control in America. Denver City Club. 68 minutes. Jan. 22, 2013.
The State of Your Gun Rights. Podcast interview with Kopel on iVoices. 10 minutes. Discusses concealed carry victories, and more. Play now.
Gun Control: Separating Fact from Myth. Dave Kopel and Gary Kleck speak at the Independent Institute, in Oakland. Nov. 15, 2000. Transcript. Note: The Independent Institute (in Oakland) is totally separate from the Independence Institute (in Colorado) where Dave works.
Getting Guns. Dave Kopel debates Michael Beard (Coalition to Stop Gun Violence) on the National Public Radio program Justice Talking. One hour.
Does Gun Control Work? Transcript of Kopel's appearance on the Ben Wattenberg's "Think Tank" program on PBS.
How can we enact meaningful gun control? The Repartee. Debate with Adam Winkler. Part 1: Background checks. Part 2: Reading the Constitution. Part 3: Natural rights. Fall 2013/Winter 2014.
Is Gun Control Back? Did it ever Go Away? On-line debate between Dave Kopel and Christopher Lockwood, the U.S. editor of The Economist. Los Angeles Times, April 21-25, 2007. April 23: the Virginia Tech murders. April 24: the politics of gun control. April 25: international issues. April 26: myths about guns. April 27: Gun solutions. How would you change America's gun laws?
Armed Response to New Orleans Looters. Volokh.com. Sept. 1, 2005.
The 911 Gamble. The Blue Press. October 1998.
To Temper Brady Act, Gun Devotees Should Nationalize, Refine It. Suggestions for Congressional reform of gun laws. News & Record (Greensboro, NC), December 13, 1994
Rowan Case and the Need to Bear Arms. Wall Street Journal. June 24, 1988. Reprinted in "Guns are Necessary for Self-Defense", in William Dudley, ed., Crime and Criminals. Opposing Viewpoints (San Diego: Greenhaven Pr. 1989).
Teixeira v. Alameda County. Cert. petition. No. 17-982. U.S. Supreme Court, Feb. 9, 2018. Amicus brief on behalf of Cato Institute, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Owner, Independence Institute, Millennial Policy. Argues that county's ban on all new gun stores violates the Second Amendment. Address circuit court doctrine, and the history of the British arms embargo on the American colonies.
Teixeira v. Alameda County, California. 873 F.3d 670 (9th Cir. 2017) (en banc). Amicus brief on county ban on all new gun stores. Historical evidence from the American Revolution shows that the British bans on firearms commerce led the Americans to take up arms.
Can a county ban all gun stores? 9th Circuit amicus brief suggests not. Washington Post. Feb. 1, 2017.
The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act: Facts and policy. Washington Post. May 24, 2016.
9th Circuit opinion on rights of gun stores applies standard, rigorous Second Amendment doctrines. Washington Post. May 16, 2016. Archived on Reason, Volokh Conspiracy.
SHOT Show Report. Volokh.com. Jan. 17, 2009.
The Sullivan Principles: Protecting the Second Amendment from Civil Abuse. Argues that courts should protect the Second Amendment from abusive lawsuits designed to interfere with Second Amendment rights, just as courts currently protect First Amendment rights from improper libel lawsuits. 19 Seton Hall Legislative Journal 737 (1995).
Cities sue the gun industry. Dave Kopel debates Jonathan Lowy from Handgun Control, Inc., regarding the municipal lawsuits. Cato Institute. Feb. 26, 1999. C-Span.
Mexico Comes Knocking. A seemingly ridiculous plan by the Mexican government to sue U.S. gunmakers for drug-cartel violence south of the border could spell doom for America's firearm industry. America's 1st Freedom. Oct. 2011.
Second Circuit reverses Judge Weinstein's order against firearms stores. Concurrence harshly rebukes him. Volokh.com. May 18, 2011.
Mayor Daley and other Mayors: Seek "redress against the gun industry" in the World Court. Volokh.com. April 28, 2010.
Congress bans abusive anti-gun lawsuits. Volokh.com. Oct. 20, 2005.
Florida court rejects Grunow suit. Volokh.com. June 2, 2005.
NAACP lawsuit. NRO The Corner. April 1, 2003.
Gunned Down. The case for prohibiting abusive lawsuits. The West Palm Beach suit against the wholesaler of a Raven pistol used to murder a teacher. National Review Online. Nov. 15, 2002.
Boston consent decree dissolved. NRO The Corner. April 16, 2002.
Anti-tobacco activist Mark Pertshcuk offers anti-gun strategy. NRO The Corner. March 16, 2002.
Maryland case rejected. NRO The Corner. March 10, 2002.
Protecting Makers of Weapons Boosts Democracy, Rights. Analysis of Merrill v. Navegar. Los Angeles Daily Journal, and the San Francisco Daily Journal. Aug. 30, 2001.
Smith and Wesson's Faustian Bargain. National Review Online, Mar. 20 & 21, 2000. [Note: the agreement described in these articles never went into effect. Smith & Wesson is now under American ownership, and has no agreements stemming from the abusive lawsuits.]
Should Gunmakers Pay Damages to Local Governments for Gun-related Violence and Injuries? Feb. 11, 2000. CQ Researcher (Congressional Quarterly).
Anti-Gunners Target Gun Ads, 1st Amendment. The Blue Press, Aug. 2000. In italiano.
See also: Media Analysis and First Amendment page
Big First Amendment win in United States v. Stevens. Federal statute could have been used to ban hunting videos and magazines. Volokh.com. April 20, 2010.
Bowling Truths. Michael Moore's mocking. National Review Online. Apr. 4, 2003. Deconstructing the dishonest documentary Bowling for Columbine.
Fox 31 misleads on 'sniper' rifles. Despite news segment's claims, it takes more than mouse click to obtain firearms. Rocky Mountain News/Denver Post. October 27, 2002.
Round Table Discussion: Violence in the Media. David Kopel, Eleanor Acheson (Asst. U.S. Atty. Genl. for Policy Development), Charles W. Guswelle (Kansas City Star), and others. University of Kansas Law School symposium.
Gun Rights and the Constitution: Was Heller Insignificant? An examination of a New York Times article which overlooked most of the Second Amendment victories which have flowed from Heller. The New Ledger. March 26, 2009.
Did Heller matter? The New York Times says it did not, but Kopel details the Times' numerous omissions. iVoices.org podcast. April 3, 2009. MP3.
Nothing written here is to be construed as necessarily representing the views of the Independence Institute or as an attempt to influence any election or legislative action. Please send comments to Independence Institute, 727 East 16th. Ave., Denver, Colo. 80203. Phone 303-279-6536. (email) webmngr @ i2i.org