Title: History, Heller, and High-Capacity Magazines: What is the Proper Standard of Review for Second Amendment Challenges?
Abstract: Introduction I. The Contours of Modern Second Amendment Jurisprudence: From Miller to Heller A. Second Amendment Jurisprudence Before 2008 B. District of Columbia v. Heller. A Novel Approach C. Heller's Limits: Presumptively Lawful Regulations and the Common Use Test D. Complications Posed by the Common Use Test II. Conflicting Views on the Proper Standard of Review and the Unique Challenges Posed by High-Capacity Magazine Legislation A. Expanding Heller to the States: McDonald v. City of Chicago B. Evolution of the Common Use Test After McDonald C. Popular Option: The Marzzarella Two-Step D. Reframing the Question: Judge Kavanaugh Dissents E. Recent Judicial Approval of the Kavanaugh Approach F. The Puzzle of High-Capacity Magazine Restrictions III. Text, History, and Tradition, Not a Two-Step Test A. The Kavanaugh Approach Permits Increased Judicial Flexibility B. The Kavanaugh Approach Creates More Predictable Results C. The Kavanaugh Approach Offers Significant Ease of Use D. The Kavanaugh Approach Is More Consistent with Supreme Court Precedent E. Applying the Kavanaugh Approach to High-Capacity Magazine Restrictions F. Applying the Marzzarella Two-Step Test to High Capacity Magazine Restrictions G. High-Capacity Magazine Restriction Hypothetical Illustrate the Superiority of the Kavanaugh Approach H. Unresolved Problems Surrounding the Kavanaugh Approach Conclusion INTRODUCTION In 1996, Daniel Chovan was convicted in California state court of a misdemeanor that did not involve a gun. (1) After inflicting corporal injury on his spouse, Cheryl Fix, he was sentenced to 120 days in jail and three years of supervised release. (2) Although Chovan did not use a firearm in committing the offense, he was banned from possessing a gun for the rest of his life under a federal statute applicable only to persons convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence crimes. (3) Chovan challenged the law as an unconstitutional infringement of his Second Amendment rights. (4) In evaluating Chovan's case, the Ninth Circuit was faced with a problem: what standard of review should apply to Chovan's constitutional claim? (5) Absent clear guidance from the Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit was left to choose its own standard. (6) Even though the Ninth Circuit found that the federal statute substantially burdened Chovan's Second Amendment rights, it opted to grant the federal government moderate deference, and applied intermediate scrutiny. (7) After examining the regulation through this lens, the Ninth Circuit concluded that the statute was constitutional. (8) Thus, without any approval from the Supreme Court regarding its methodology, the Chovan court both independently selected a standard of review for a constitutional challenge and upheld severely burdensome legislation by virtue of its choice. Chovan is not an isolated example of constitutional confusion. In fact, it is simply the most recent example of the legal debate surrounding the proper standard of review for the Second Amendment. The proper analytical framework for statutes challenged as an unconstitutional infringement on individual Second Amendment rights after District of Columbia v. Heller has emerged as both a hotly contested and imprecise zone of jurisprudence for lower courts. (9) As an increasing number of Second Amendment cases wend through the federal system, these courts have been faced with two types of challenged gun statutes. This Note defines those two types as statutes that prohibit and those that limit. Prohibiting statutes constitute blanket bans on certain weapons or materials, and include regulations like the District of Columbia (District) handgun ban struck down in Heller. (10) Limiting statutes create regulations on certain types of weapons or related activities, such as concealed carry laws or purchase restrictions. …
Publication Year: 2016
Publication Date: 2016-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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