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Argument: Proper regulation of handgun use increases safety

Issue Report: DC handgun ban

Supporting Evidence

  • Robert A. Levy , “Individual Ruling: D.C. Gun Ban Goes Down” National Review Online , March 13, 2007 ” As a nation, we have chosen to have a written Constitution for good reason, and it has served us well for more than two centuries. None of which suggests that the D.C. government is foreclosed from regulating the use and ownership of firearms. Indeed, Judge Silberman conceded that “the protections of the Second Amendment are subject to the same sort of reasonable restrictions that have been recognized as limiting, for instance, the First Amendment.” Perhaps, said the court, D.C. could justify concealed-carry restrictions, the registration of firearms, proficiency testing, and no gun possession by felons or minors. (…)Respected legal scholars across the political spectrum agree with Judge Silberman, and recognize that the Second Amendment secures an individual right, which can be limited in some circumstances.(…)Harvard’s Laurence Tribe, another well-known liberal scholar, and Yale professor Akhil Amar acknowledge that there is an individual right to keep and bear arms, albeit limited by “reasonable regulation in the interest of public safety.”