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. The Supreme Court. Subtopics: McDonald v. Chicago. District of Columbia v. Heller. Other Supreme Court cases. Supreme Court Justices, and other judges (Gorsuch, Kagan, Sotomayor, Others).
II. Other Courts. Subtopics: Lower federal courts. 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: Modern Times. 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.
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.
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. "Red Flag" laws/gun confiscation orders. 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. History. Public health/Medicine/Psychology. Women. General/miscellaneous.
VI. Gun companies, gun sports, and lawsuits against them. Firearms business. Lawsuits. Censorship of firearms advertising.VII. Media violence and bias.
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.
Page on Religion. Includes issues of the morality of armed self-defense.
Archives for Kopel's Second Amendment Project e-mail newsletter, 1998-2011.
The First Installment of Our Legal Scholar Series: Dave Kopel. NRA. July 15, 2024. Interview re Kopel article How the British Gun Control Program Precipitated the American Revolution, 6 Charleston Law Review 283 (2012). 35 minutes.
2A Scholar David Kopel Reacts to Major Supreme Court Ruling. Kopel discusses Rahimi with Stephen Gutowski. The Reload. June 23, 2024. 46 minutes.
United States v. Rahimi. No. 22-915 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Oct. 4, 2023). Amicus brief. This brief, alone among the all the briefs filed, distinguished the two subparts of 18 U.S.Code 922(g)(C). The (C)(i) restriction arms rights of individuals whom a court has found to be "a credible threat" to intimate partners does not infringe the Second Amendment. The (C)(ii) restriction is based on no findings at all, and is an infringement. The Supreme Court's June 21, 2024, decision upheld (C)(i) (the subsection under which Rahimi had been convicted) and pointedly stated that the Court was not deciding that (C)(ii) is constitutional. The brief was filed on behalf of professors Randy Barnett, Robert Cottrol, Lee Francis, Donald Kilmer, Joyce Malcolm, George Mocsary, Joseph Muha, Joseph Olson, Glenn Reynolds, and Gregory Wallace; the Second Amendment Law Center; and the Independence Institute.
Garland v. Cargill, No. 22-976 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Jan. 26, 2023). Amicus brief. The Court's June 14, 2024, decision agreed with the position argued in the amicus brief that the federal statutory definition of "machinegun" as a gun that "automatically" fires more than one bullet by "a single function of the trigger" can not be redefined by ATF to mean "a single pull." The brief was filed on behalf of Senators Cynthia M. Lummis (Wyoming), Mike Lee (Utah), Kevin Cramer (North Dakota), John Barrasso (Wyoming), Pete Ricketts (Nebraska), Steve Daines (Montana), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Mississippi), Mike Rounds (South Dakota), Markwayne Mullin (Oklahoma); Professors Royce de R. Barondes (Missouri, emeritus), F. Lee Francis (Mississippi College School of Law), Nicholas J. Johnson (Fordham), Donald E.J. Kilmer, Jr. (Lincoln Law School), Joyce Malcolm (George Mason, emerita), Joseph V. Muha (Akron), Joseph E. Olson (Mitchell-Hamline, emeritus), David A. Raney (Hillsdale), Glenn H. Reynolds (Tennessee), E. Gregory Wallace (Campbell); and the Independence Institute.
Preview of Supreme Court Bump Stock Case. In Cargill v. Garland, the Court should apply the National Firearms Act text that Congress did enact, and not the text that gun control advocates wish had been enacted. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Feb. 27, 2024.
NRA v. Vullo, No. 22-842 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Jan. 16, 2023). Amicus brief. The Court's decision of May 30, 2024, agreed with the brief that the threats of NY Governor and his financial regulatory agency against banks and insurances companies that do business with the NRA violated the First Amendment. The brief was filed on behalf of the Second Amendment Foundation, John Locke Foundation, and Independence Institute.
Smith & Wesson v. Mexico, No. 23-1141 (U.S. Sup. Ct., May 22, 2024). Amicus brief for National Rifle Association and Independence Institute in suppport of cert. petition. Mexico is copying the malicious tactics of the American gun prohibition lobby in previous decades, with meritless litigation designed to destroy the firearms industry through litigation expenses. Mexico's crime problem is self-inflicted by its corrupt government and its nullification of the Mexican Constitution right to arms. Claims that a large percentage of Mexican crime guns are American, or recently acquired in America, are provably false.
Devil's Advocate with Jon Caldara. April 12, 2024. Discussion of anti-gun bills in the Colorado legislature. One hour.
Written testimony against Colorado HB24-1242. "Assault weapons" bill is based on plainly false "findings." Further, the bill attempts to outlaw features that enhance accuracy, because the sponsors oppose "ease of use" of firearms by "non-experts." PDF.
Written testimony against Colorado SB24-131. Safe zones for"mass shooters and other violent criminals. Bill to declare vast areas off-limits for licensed carry will endanger public safety. Licensed carry permitees are vastly more law-abiding than the general population.
Subtopics: McDonald v. Chicago. District of Columbia v. Heller. Other Supreme Court cases. Supreme Court Justices, and other judges.
NRA v. Vullo, No. 22-842 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Jan. 16, 2023). Amicus brief. The Court's decision of May 30, 2024, agreed with the brief that the threats of NY Governor and his financial regulatory agency against banks and insurances companies that do business with the NRA violated the First Amendment. The brief was filed on behalf of the Second Amendment Foundation, John Locke Foundation, and Independence Institute.
Garland v. Cargill, No. 22-976 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Jan. 26, 2023). Amicus brief. The Court's June 14, 2024, decision agreed with the position argued in the amicus brief that the federal statutory definition of "machinegun" as a gun that "automatically" fires more than one bullet by "a single function of the trigger" can not be redefined by ATF to mean "a single pull." The brief was filed on behalf of Senators Cynthia M. Lummis (Wyoming), Mike Lee (Utah), Kevin Cramer (North Dakota), John Barrasso (Wyoming), Pete Ricketts (Nebraska), Steve Daines (Montana), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Mississippi), Mike Rounds (South Dakota), Markwayne Mullin (Oklahoma); Professors Royce de R. Barondes (Missouri, emeritus), F. Lee Francis (Mississippi College School of Law), Nicholas J. Johnson (Fordham), Donald E.J. Kilmer, Jr. (Lincoln Law School), Joyce Malcolm (George Mason, emerita), Joseph V. Muha (Akron), Joseph E. Olson (Mitchell-Hamline, emeritus), David A. Raney (Hillsdale), Glenn H. Reynolds (Tennessee), E. Gregory Wallace (Campbell); and the Independence Institute.
Preview of Supreme Court Bump Stock Case. In Cargill v. Garland, the Court should apply the National Firearms Act text that Congress did enact, and not the text that gun control advocates wish had been enacted. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Feb. 27, 2024.
United States v. Rahimi. No. 22-915 (U.S. Sup. Ct., Oct. 4, 2023). Amicus brief. This brief, alone among the all the briefs filed, distinguished the two subparts of 18 U.S.Code 922(g)(C). The (C)(i) restriction arms rights of individuals whom a court has found to be "a credible threat" to intimate partners does not infringe the Second Amendment. The (C)(ii) restriction is based on no findings at all, and is an infringement. The Supreme Court's June 21, 2024, decision upheld (C)(i) (the subsection under which Rahimi had been convicted) and pointedly stated that the Court was not deciding that (C)(ii) is constitutional. The brief was filed on behalf of professors Randy Barnett, Robert Cottrol, Lee Francis, Donald Kilmer, Joyce Malcolm, George Mocsary, Joseph Muha, Joseph Olson, Glenn Reynolds, and Gregory Wallace; the Second Amendment Law Center; and the Independence Institute.
2A Scholar David Kopel Reacts to Major Supreme Court Ruling. Kopel discusses Rahimi with Stephen Gutowski. The Reload. June 23, 2024. 46 minutes.
Gun Scholar David Kopel Explains SCOTUS Oral Arguments in Second Amendment Case. The Reload. Nov. 12, 2023.
The Solicitor General's response to my amicus brief in Rahimi. Only one federal firearms prohibitor does not require any specific finding of fact. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Oct. 31, 2023.
Masterful Takedown of Gun Controllers' Ridiculous Arguments. Law of Self Defense, by Andrew Branca. Oct. 19, 2023. Host Andrew Branca reads Kopel's amicus brief in United States v. Rahimi. 52 minutes.
Second Amendment Scholar David Kopel on the Supreme Court's Latest Gun Case. Kopel explains Rahimi amicus brief of Independence Institute, Second Amendment Law Center, and Professors of Second Amendment Law. The Reload. Oct. 25, 2023. 44 minutes.
Old gun controls that were constitutionally repealed are not precedents for modern gun control. Amicus brief in Supreme Court's Second Amendment Rahimi case. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Oct. 6, 2023.
Restoring the right to bear arms: New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen. In 2021-22 Cato Supreme Court Review (Trevor Burrus ed., Sept. 16, 2022).
Restoring the right to bear arms, New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen. Summary of above article for Cato Supreme Court Review. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Aug. 8, 2022.
In New York State Rifle and Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen, the U.S. Supreme Court cites Kopel's article The “Sensitive Places” Doctrine: Locational Limits on the Right to Bear Arms, 13 Charleston Law Review 205 (2018). (Page 27 of the slip opinion).
New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. No. 20-843. Amicus brief of Professors of Second Amendment Law, Weld County, Colorado, Weld Sheriff Steve Reams, Independence Institute, and Firearms Policy Foundation. July 14, 2021.
The Sources Cited by the Supreme Court in Bruen: Guidance for judicial examination of legal history. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Feb. 13, 2023.
Clarence Thomas's Long Victory. Washington Examiner. July 7, 2022.
Surprising support for the right to bear arms. Reading the cited sources from Everytown's amicus brief. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 3, 2021.
Social science on the right to bear arms. Doomsday warnings don't hold up. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 2, 2021.
Bearing Arms in "Sensitive Places." Some legal history and doctrinal suggestions. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 2, 2021.
Dred Scott and the Second Amendment. Kopel's Law and Liberty News, on Independence Institute Television (IITV). The upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case on the right to bear arms involves some of the same fundamental rights that were at issue in 1856 in Dred Scott v. Sanford.
Amnesty International brief against right to bear arms. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Oct. 13, 2021.
Second Amendment professors brief in Supreme Court right to bear arms case. American and English historical precedents show a robust individual right. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Oct. 6, 2021.
Amnesty International brief against right to bear arms. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Oct. 13, 2021.
Second Amendment professors brief in Supreme Court right to bear arms case. American and English historical precedents show a robust individual right. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Oct. 6, 2021.
TTAG’s All-Star Supreme Court Argument After-Action Legal Analysis. The Truth About Guns. Nov. 3, 2021. Post-oral argument discussion of Supreme Court oral argument in NYSRPA v. Bruen. David Kopel, Eugene Volokh, Joseph Greenlee, Cody Wisniewski.
First gun control case in more than a decade reaches Supreme Court. How it could affect Californians. KCRW radio, Los Angeles, with Madeleine Brand. Nov. 03, 2021.
The Right to "Bear" Arms. Short Circuit Podcast, Institute for Justice. New Supreme Court case on right to bear arms; 9th Circuit Young decision against the right. May 21, 2021. 41 minutes.
Duncan v. Bonta. No. 21-1194. U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief in support of cert. petition. Lower federal courts have refused to apply the Supreme Court's "common use" test for protected arms, and have invented substitute tests to uphold arms bans. Mar. 31, 2022. Result: Certiorari granted, opinion below vacated, remanding for further consideration.
Bianchi v. Frosh. No. 21-902. Cert. petition amicus brief for Professors of Second Amendment Law, Cato Institute, John Locke Foundation, Center to Keep and Bear Arms, and Independence Institute. Maryland's ban on semiautomatic rifles violates the Second Amendment, and lower court cases upholding rifle bans are illogical. Feb. 11, 2022. Result: Certiorari granted, opinion below vacated, remanding for further consideration.
Caniglia v. Strom. No. 20-157. Merits amicus brief of Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, and Independence Institute (Jan. 15, 2021). A judicially-created "community caretaking exception" to the Fourth Amendment allows warrantless searches of automobiles without probable cause. Can the exception be extended to the home? The amicus brief urges not, based on the historical sanctity of the home in Anglo-American law, plus analysis of the text of the Amendments I through V.
Folajtar v. Rosen. No 20-812. Cert. petition amicus brief of Cato Institute, Reason Foundation, Individual Rights Foundation, and Independence Institute. (Jan. 14, 2021). Lisa Folajtar pled guilty to cheating on her taxes in 2011, and served three years probation. She has been law-abiding ever since, and has never been dangerous. She should not lose the right to arms for the rest of her life.
Holloway v. Rosen. No. 20-782. Cert. petition amicus brief of Cato Institute, Reason Foundation, Individual Rights Foundation, Independence Institute, and Mountain States Legal Foundation Center to Keep and Bear Arms (Jan. 7, 2021). The Second Amendment allows dangerous people to be disarmed, but not disarmament of a person who is said to lack "virtue."
Zoie H. v. State of Nebraska. No 19-1418. July 24, 2020. Amicus brief of Professors of Second Amendment law, Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, California Gun Rights Foundation, Madison Society Foundation, Second Amendment Foundation, and Independence Institute. Can an adult be prohibited from exercising the right to arms based on a juvenile conviction for which a jury trial was not allowed. The amicus brief discusses the history and tradition of arms rights for young adults.
Worman v. Healey. No. 19-404. U.S. Supreme Court. Oct. 24, 2019. Cert. petition amicus brief. Massachusetts ban on common arms violates Supreme Court precedent. The Supreme Court should bring order to the conflicting lower cases about bans on common arms.
Worman v. Healey. Cato Institute. Oct. 24, 2019. With Joseph G.S. Greenlee and Ilya Shapiro.
Heller’s Precarious Situation. National Review. Sept. 12, 2019.
Remington v. Soto. No. 19-168. Sept. 4, 2019. Amicus brief of Professors of Second Amendment law, Cato Institute, Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, California Gun Rights Foundation, Madison Foundation. and Independence Institute. Appendix of professor biographies.
Amicus brief on lawsuits against gun manufacturers invokes NY Times v. Sullivan. Courts should stop abusive lawsuits against the First and Second Amendments. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Sept. 4, 2019.
New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. New York City. No. 28-280. May 14, 2019. Amicus brief for Professors of Second Amendment law, Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, Millennial Policy Center, and Independence Institute. Appendix of professor biographies. The Second Circuit upheld New York City's ban on licensed handgun owners taking their handguns out of the City. The ban is contrary to good practices for safety training. The doctrinal errors found in the Second Circuit decision are prevalent in other circuits, demonstrating the need for further guidance from the Supreme Court.
Mance v. Whitaker. Cert. petition. No. 18-663. Dec. 20, 2022. Amicus brief for Second Amendment law professors, Independence Institute, and Millennial Policy Center. Challenge to federal ban on interstate handgun sales between consenting states. Argues that Court should take the case to explicate the proper test for Second Amendment challenges, due to conflicts in the lower courts, and nullification of the Second Amendment in some courts.
Teixeira v. Alameda County, 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.
Kolbe v. Hogan. Cert. petition. No. 17-127. Aug. 21, 2017. Amicus brief on behalf of National Sheriffs' Association, Cato Institute, Second Amendment Foundation, and Independence Institute. Maryland's ban on common firearms and standard magazines endangers law enforcement officers and public safety. The ban is contrary to the American tradition of arms regulation.
Supreme Court should address lower court nullification of the Second Amendment. Scotusblog. Nov. 20, 2019. with Randy Barnett. Nov. 20, 2019.
Knife Ban and Vagueness Case at Supreme Court Conference. New York City continues to prosecute people for ordinary folding knives. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. June 10, 2019.
Supreme Court's New Second Amendment Case: Opportunity to address nullification of the right to arms. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Jan. 22, 2019.
Supreme Court Should Clarify Second Amendment Test. Challenge to ban on interstate handgun sales would be a good vehicle. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 20, 2018.
The Supreme Court and the Second Amendment today. Guns, Politics and Freedom radio show. Dec. 10, 2017. Kopel starts at 11:00.
Second Amendment Update 2016. Your Weekly Constitutional. Feb. 26, 2016. Interviews with David Kopel and Adam Winkler.
The McDonald Case, How Can We Learn From It? GunLawShow.com, Dec. 2011.
McDonald explained. Kopel on "Devil's Advocate." Colorado Public Television, channel 12, Denver. July 9, 2010. You Tube: part 1, part 2, part 3. Half-hour.
Wins of Change. Special digital edition of America's 1st Freedom, July 2010. Long article by Kopel explaining the Supreme Court opinions in McDonald.
Mike Rosen show. Discussion of McDonald, Kagan nomination, other Supreme Court issues. One hour. 850 KOA, Denver. June 29, 2010.
NRA News, June 28, 2010. Last segment of the show. 28 minutes.
Kopel's Supreme Court amicus brief in McDonald v. Chicago. The brief was cited by Justice Alito's plurality opinion (footnote 2), and by Justice Stevens' dissent (twice).
Podcasts and videos
Incorporating the Second Amendment. Cato Institute Daily Podcast. June 22, 2010.
Waiting for McDonald. And the impending Kagan hearings. NRA News. June 21, 2010. Last segment on the show, 22 minutes.
Analysis of the McDonald Oral Argument. Downrange TV with Michael Bane. 34 minutes. Mar. 2, 2010.
The Second Amendment in the Supreme Court. Kopel speaks to the Global General Gathering of the Triple 9 Society, and explains the upcoming Supreme Court case on whether the Fourteenth Amendment makes the Second Amendment applicable to state and local governments. Sept. 6, 2009. 86 minutes, video. Watch. Download mp4.s
Articles and blogging
NRA Makes its Case. The oral argument in McDonald v. Chicago. America's 1st Freedom, May 2010.
"Reasonable regulation" and McDonald. Volokh.com. March 2, 2010.
The Next Supreme Decision: Showdown Over Chicago. The NRA's brief in McDonald v. Chicago. America's 1st Freedom. Feb. 2010.
McDonald amicus briefs: Academics, Congress redux, and California District Attorneys. Volokh.com. November 25, 2009.
McDonald amicus: Don't trust Fairman and Berger. Volokh.com. November 23, 2009.
Rules for Aldridge's Bingham. Volokh.com. November 23, 2009.
Institute for Justice brief in McDonald v. Chicago. Volokh.com. November 23, 2009.
Congressional brief in McDonald v. Chicago. Volokh.com. November 23, 2009.
Academics for the Second Amendment brief in McDonald. Volokh.com. November 23, 2009.
Cato brief in McDonald v. Chicago. Volokh.com. November 23, 2009.
NRA brief in McDonald v. Chicago. Volokh.com. November 17, 2009.
Kopel Amicus brief in the Chicago handgun ban cases. Filed in the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, Feb. 5, 2009.
Articles and blogging
What good is an individual right if your state won't enforce it? Analysis of the 7th Circuit's decision holding that the Second Amendment does not limit state or local governments. America's 1st Freedom. August 2009.
The State of Heller. Does the Second Amendment apply to state and local governments? Ongoing cases may soon give the Supreme Court an opportunity to issue a definitive decision on this very important question. Discussion of the 9th Circuit's new decision in Nordyke v. King, plus other cases involving incorporation. America's 1st Freedom. June 2009. PDF.
The First Dominoes Fall: Morton Grove and Wilmette Handgun Bans. The Volokh Conspiracy weblog, June 29, 2008.
Scholarly journals
The Natural Right of Self-defense: Heller's Lesson for the World. Symposium issue on the Heller case. 59 Syracuse Law Review (2009).
Unraveling Judicial Restraint: Guns, Abortion, and the Faux Conservatism of J. Harvie Wilkinson, III. 25 Journal of Law & Politics 1 (University of Virginia) (2009). Critique of 4th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Wilkinson's Virginia Law Review article asserting the D.C. v. Heller is a 21st century version of Roe v. Wade. With Nelson Lund.
To Heller and Back: Assessing the constitutionality of particular gun controls post-Heller. 25 Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice 106 (2009). With Paul Blackman.
Audio and video
Gun and self-defense law reform after Heller. Kopel presentation at Fordham Law School. Kopel begins at 15:30. Mar. 9, 2012.
Supreme Court Victory: Now What? Independent Thinking. CPT12 TV. Kopel and the head of Colorado's Million Mom March. July 12, 2008. 27 minutes.
Kopel on Downrange Radio. 24 minutes on the Heller decision. June 27, 2008.
Short articles and blogging
Is Heller Hollow? Explains the court battle over 2d Amendment standard of review. America's 1st Freedom. Nov. 2011.
Gun Rights and the Constitution: Was Heller Insignificant? An examination of last week's New York Times article, which overlooked most of the Second Amendment victories which have flowed from Heller. The New Ledger. March 26, 2009.
Kmiec v. Kmiec on Heller. Volokh.com. Jan. 6, 2009.
What Next for D.C.'s Gun Laws. Congress should intervene to protect the Second Amendment. Wall Street Journal. August 8, 2008. With Robert A. Levy.
Freedom Unbound! In striking down the D.C. gun ban, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that the Second Amendment protects an individual right of all Americans. America's 1st Freedom. Aug. 2008.
After Heller: The New American Debate on Guns. Weblog debate about the Heller case and its implications. Participants are Bob Levy of the Cato Institute, Kopel, Dennis Henigan of the Brady Campaign, and Erwin Chemerinsky. Kopel's entries are: "The Right to Bear Arms and 'Sensible' Gun Laws"; "Slope Still Slippery"; "More on 'The' and Pre-existing Rights"; "One Man's 'Sensible' is Another Man's 'Extreme'"; "What Did They Mean in Massachusetts?"; "The NRA and the Supreme Court"; and "In Scalia's Defense". Cato Unbound. July 2008.
Heller's Kitchen. How the Heller decision may affect New York City gun laws. New York Sun, June 30, 2008.
The First Dominoes Fall: Morton Grove & Wilmette Handgun Bans. Volokh.com. June 29, 2008.
What is the right protected in the Heller dissent? Volokh.com. June 28, 2008.
Heller is just the beginning of expanding judicial protection of the right to arms. ReasonOnline, June 27, 2008
Miller, Colt .45s and Natural Law. The Heller decision provides constitutional protection for what it recognizes as the natural right of self-defense. The decision also show DC's ban on all self-loading guns to be unconstitutional. Scotusblog, June 27, 2008.
Conservative Activists Key to DC Handgun Decision. Human Events. June 27, 2008.
Constitution is Big Winner in D.C. Gun Case. Pajamas Media. June 26, 2008.
Ringside at the Supreme Court. Report on the Heller oral argument. America's 1st Freedom. June 2008..
Oral argument in DC v. Heller. The view from the counsel table. Volokh Conspiracy weblog. Mar. 31, 2008.
Press conference after the oral argument in District of Columbia v. Heller. Mar. 18, 2008. C-Span. The first half of the press conference is Mayor Fenty and other D.C. spokespersons. Kopel appears in the background at about 11:24, and speaks from about 18:20 to 19:33. C-Span video, Kopel at 21:30. MP3 of the pro-Heller portion.
NRA News interview on the Supreme Court steps, after oral argument in Heller. Mar. 18, 2008. You Tube.
Kopel telephone interview for Down Range TV, discussing the day's oral argument in District of Columbia v. Heller. Mar. 18, 2008. MP3.
Amicus brief of the Independence Institute, the International Law Enforcement Educators & Trainers Association, and many other law enforcement organizations and leaders in District of Columbia v. Heller. PDF.
Ready to shoot. The legal availability of handguns makes for a better-prepared police force and a safer citizenry. Baltimore Sun. Feb. 27, 2008.With Ed Nowicki.
What are the anti's thinking? America's 1st Freedom. April 2008. Analysis of the anti-Second Amendment amicus briefs in District of Columbia v. Heller. PDF.
Military Brief (including full text of Maryland Governor Herbert L. O'Conor's 1942 radio address calling for Maryland Minutemen to defend the state), 2/13/08. District Attorneys, the ABA, and precedent in DC v. Heller, 2/13/08. Goldwater vs. the Solicitor General, in DC v. Heller, 2/12/08. State-level Battle of the Attorneys General in DC v. Heller, 2/12/08. Battle of the Attorneys General in DC v. Heller, 2/11/08. Historical briefs in DC v. Heller, 2/11/08. Law Enforcement Brief in DC v. Heller, 2/11/08. Respondent's Brief in DC v. Heller, 2/7/08. NRA brief in DC v. Heller, 2/7/08. Claremont Institute Empirical Brief in DC v. Heller, 2/7/08. DC v. Heller, amicus brief on racial issues, 2/8/08. Congressional Brief in DC v. Heller, 2/8/08. LGBT brief in DC v. Heller, 2/9/08. The English Roots of the Right Arms. DC v. Heller brief, 2/9/08. Women's Rights Brief in DC v. Heller, 2/9/08. Nelson Lund brief in DC v. Heller, 2/10/08. Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership brief in DC v. Heller, 2/10/08. The "Failed State" Brief in DC v. Heller, 2/10/08. Amicus Briefs for Petitioner in D.C. v. Heller, 1/14/08.
American Constitution Society panel on DC v. Heller. Moderated by Dahlia Lithwick of Slate, the panel features a discussion with John Payne (formerly of the D.C. Corporation Counsel's office; attorney of record on the Brady amicus brief, and currently head of the NAACP LDF), Carl Bogus (Prof. of Law at Roger Williams, and lead author on a pro-DC amicus brief of some historians) and Dave Kopel. The debate was held at the National Press Club, in Washington, D.C.; on March 13, 2008. C-Span video.
Larry Tribe's flip-flop in DC v. Heller. Volokh.com. Mar. 4, 2008.
The Supreme Decision. Analysis of the D.C. v. Heller case. America's 1st Freedom. Jan. 2008.
DC's Gun Ban, Round 2. Analysis of the D.C. Circuit Court's denial of the city's petition for rehearing en banc. America's First Freedom. July 2007.
Supreme Court Gun Cases: Two Centuries of Rights Revealed. By David B. Kopel, Alan Korwin, and Stephen P. Halbrook. Book review in WorldNet Daily.
The Self-Defense Cases: How the United States Supreme Court Confronted a Hanging Judge in the Nineteenth Century and Taught Some Lessons for Jurisprudence in the Twenty-first. 27 American Journal of Criminal Law 293 (2000).
Miller versus Texas: Police Violence, Race Relations, Capital Punishment, and Gun-toting in Texas in the Nineteenth Century—and Today. 9 Journal of Law and Policy 737 (2001). With Cynthia Leonardatos and Stephen P. Halbrook.
The Supreme Court's Thirty-five Other Gun Cases. 18 St. Louis University Public Law Review 99 (1999).
The Sounds of the Supremes: A Reply to Professor Yassky. Part of an exchange sparked by the previous article. 18 St. Louis U. Pub. L. Rev. 203 (1999).
What Miller Meant. Kopel interviews Michael O'Shea about the history and multiple meanings of United States v. Miller. 65 minutes. Feb. 16, 2010. MP3.
Why United States v. Miller was so badly written. Volokh.com. February 27, 2010.
Guns in Court. (The Miller case). National Review Online. May 30, 2001.
No Firearms Exception to the Fourth Amendment. Regarding win in Florida v. J.L. Chronicles magazine. August 2000, pp. 7-8.
Keep and Bear Arms. All of the Supreme Court's 19th century cases involving the Second Amendment recognize a broad right for all law-abiding citizens, not a "collective" or militia-only right. America's 1st Freedom. Mar. 2008.
The Second Amendment Before the Supreme Court. United States v. Miller and all preceding cases. Liberty. Dec. 2003.
Explaining Eisentrager. The Second Amendment is for individual gun owners. National Review Online. April 20, 2004. Español.
Rights During War. In 1864, the U.S. Army court-martialed an Indiana civilian and sentenced him to death. What does this case teach us about the Second Amendment and the limits of presidential powers? Liberty magazine, April 2004.
Presser v. Illinois. Analysis of the 1886 case.
Dread the Dred Scott Reference. Don't toss this case around unless you know what you're talking about. National Review Online. Dec. 14, 2000.
NRA News. Cam & Company. July 10, 2017. Brett Kavanaugh nomination.
Judge Kavanaugh and the Second Amendment. The text, history, and tradition methodology applied to D.C.'s unusually restrictive gun laws. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. July 9, 2018.
Why Judge Gorsuch Should Be Justice Gorsuch. America's 1st Freedom. April 2017.
Anti-gunners are savaging Gorsuch for vindicating an innocent man. The Hill. Mar. 7, 2017. With Joseph Greenlee.
Tracing Judge Gorsuch's Paper Trail On The Second Amendment. America's 1st Freedom. Feb. 2, 2017.
Neil Gorsuch nominated for Supreme Court. Colorado Inside-Out. Feb. 3, 2017 (TV).
Kopel oral testimony on Kagan nomination. Starts at 41:09. YouTube of Kopel only, including Q&A with Senators Sessions and Hatch. Audio only. MP3 download.
Written testimony on Elena Kagan nomination. Co-authored with Stephen Halbrook.
Kopel Senate briefing on Kagan and McDonald. U.S. Senate Second Amendment Task Force. June 21, 2010. Link to the 22 minute video, and links to presentations by Stephen Halbrook and Hans Von Spakovsky. YouTube.
Kopel's testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, regarding the Second Amendment record of Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Written testimony in PDF (much longer than the oral testimony). Video of Kopel's testimony to the Committee, July 16, 2009, C-Span. Other C-Span video, Kopel at 38:58.
A Sotomayor Critic Weighs In. Kopel and Christian Science Monitor reporter Todd Zwillich discuss the Sotomayor nomination. WNYC, "The Takeaway." July 15, 2009. Approx. 14 minutes.
blog: Sotomayor vs. the Second Amendment, Part II, 6/2/2009. Highly dubious claim against Sotomayor, 5/26/09. Sonia Sotomayor vs. the Second Amendment, 5/26/09.
Sonia Sotomayor. Kopel interviewed by Amy Oliver on KFKA radio. May 27, 2009. MP3.
Sotomayor targets guns now. Justice's dissent contradicts confirmation testimony. Washington Times, June 29, 2010.
We Need Judges Who Stand For Gun Rights. America's 1st Freedom. Oct. 2017. With Joseph Greenlee.
Potential Supreme Court nominee records on the Second Amendment. Volokh.com. April 11, 2010.
Diane Wood on the Second Amendment. Volokh.com. April 9, 2010.
Merrick Garland is no friend of the rights of gun owners. Volokh.com. April 9, 2010.
Goodwin Liu on the Second Amendment. Volokh.com. February 25, 2010.
Warren Burger and the Second Amendment. Kopel responds to ex-Chief Justice Burger's article on the Second Amendment in Parade magazine.
Blog: Second Amendment Tea Leaves, 10/29/05 (Corrigan, Luttig, Alito). Miers on the RKBA, 10/3/05. Gun Case in the Supreme Court; Sporting Clays Case in Virginia, 11/4/04.
Subtopics: Lower federal courts. Emerson case. State Constitutions and cases.
Law journals
Errors of Omission: Words Missing from the Ninth Circuit's Young v. State of Hawaii. 2021 University of Illinois Law Review Online 172 (May 13, 2021). With George A. Mocsary.
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).
Federal Circuit Second Amendment Developments 2018. 7 Lincoln Memorial University Law Review (forthcoming 2019). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.
History and Tradition in Modern Circuit Cases on the Second Amendment Rights of Young People. 43 Southern Illinois University Law Journal 119 (2018). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.
Data Indicate Second Amendment Underenforcement. 68 Duke Law Journal Online 79 (2018). Problems in the Second, Fourth, and Ninth Circuits.
Federal Circuit Second Amendment Developments 2017-2018. Texas State Bar Association. Firearms Law Seminar. 2018. With Joseph Greenlee.
The Federal Circuits' Second Amendment Doctrines. 61 St. Louis University Law Journal 193 (2017). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.
Short articles
"Shall Not Be Infringed" Is Pretty Clear. Analysis of recent court decisions in Maryland and Oregon, and the NY Times' sloppy coverage thereof. America's 1st Freedom. Jan. 18, 2024.
How the NRA Helped to Reopen Massachusetts’s Gun Stores. America's 1st Freedom. May 14, 2020.
Do Some Courts Underenforce the Second Amendment? Data show problems in several Circuits. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 27, 2018.
Good News for the Second Amendment. May 26, 2016. Independence Institute Freedom Minute. Explaining two important new federal court decisions.
The Federal Circuits' Second Amendment Doctrines. Washington Post. April 22, 2016.
Sons of Heller. America's 1st Freedom. August 2015. Some of the lesser-known federal court decisions which have protected Second Amendment rights.
NRA News. July 31, 2015. Sons of Heller. Little-known Second Amendment victories in the federal distinct courts.
Brief
Wrenn v. District of Columbia (D.C. Circuit). Amicus brief of legal historians explains that peaceable carrying of arms was lawful in the American colonies, in the Early Republic, and in the vast majority of the United States through 1900.
Short articles
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.
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.
"Heller 2" at the DC Circuit Court. Cato Institute podcast. Sept. 23, 2015.
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.
Licensed handgun carry now legal in District of Columbia: Palmer v. DC. Effects of federal court decision allowing licensed handgun carry in D.C. Washington Post. July 28, 2014.
Brief
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.
Short article
First Circuit upholds federal ban on juvenile handgun possession. Volokh.com. October 6, 2009.
Brief
Shew v. Malloy, no. 14-319-cv (2d Cir. 2014). Amicus brief for S.J. Fjestad (author of The Blue Book of Gun Values and other books on firearms history) and the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence. The history of magazines of greater than 10 rounds, and of magazine prohibition, in the United States.
Short articles
Preliminary injunction against New York bans on licensed carry. Gun Owners of America prevail in Antonyuk v. Hochul. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 7, 2022
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. 21, 2015.
Second Circuit rules in favor of firearms dealers on procedural due process. Volokh.com. August 17, 2009.
Delaware State Sportsmen’s Association v. Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security, Nos. No. 23-1633, 23-1634, 23-1641 (3d Cir. July 10, 2023). Amicus brief of International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, National Association of Chiefs of Police, Professors of Second Amendment Law, and Independence Institute. Assertions about the supposedly "exceptional" wounding power and dangers of so-called "assault weapons" are false. The arms are well-suited for law-defense of self and others, and are frequently chosen for that purpose by law enforcement officers and citizens. Claims that ordinary law enforcement officers routinely use extremely dangerous super-powerful weapons are defamatory to law enforcement.
National Shooting Sports Foundation v. Platkin. No. 23-1214. Third Circuit amicus brief. New Jersey statute to allow lawsuits against law-abiding firearms businesses violates the Second Amendment, and is similar to abusive First Amendment lawsuits from the Jim Crow period.
Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs, Inc. v. Attorney General of New Jersey. No. 19-3142 (3d Cir. Sept. 22, 2020). Amicus brief of law professors, Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, Madison Society Foundation, California Gun Rights Foundation, and Independence Institute. In support of petition for rehearing en banc, regarding N.J. magazine confiscation statute.
Magazine confiscation splits Third and Ninth Circuits: Analysis and history. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Sept. 8, 2020.
Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs v. Attorney General or New Jersey. No. 19-3142. 3d Circuit. Feb. 3, 2020.Amicus brief of Professors of Second Amendment Law, Firearms Policy Coalition/Foundation, Madison Society Foundation, California Gun Rights Foundation, and Independence Institute. Repeating firearms predate the Second Amendment by two centuries; by the time of the Second Amendment, repeaters holding more than 10 rounds were well established. Accordingly, New Jersey's confiscation of all such magazines is unconstitutional.
Magazines over 10 rounds were well-known to the Founders. Third Circuit case challenges NJ magazine confiscation statute. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Feb. 11, 2020.
Federal judge's ruling on gun restrictions in Delaware public housing. NRA News. Aug. 8, 2012.
Briefs
Maryland Shall Issue v. Hogan. No. 21-2017. Fourth Circuit amicus brief. Legal history before 1900 provides no support for licensing or training mandates for keeping an arm at home. Aug. 10, 2022.
Maryland Shall Issue v. Hogan. No. 16-cv-3311-ELH (D. Md. Oct. 5, 2018). Amicus brief of International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, 11 law professors, Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee For The Right To Keep And Bear Arms, Jews For The Preservation Of Firearms Ownership, Millennial Policy Center, and Independence Institute. Maryland's burdensome handgun licensing system in contrary to original understanding, history, and tradition, and cannot pass heightened scrutiny.
Woollard v. Gallagher, 712 F.3d 865 (4th Cir. 2013). Amicus brief of the International Law Enforcement Educators & Trainers Association, International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, Inc., Prof. Clayton Cramer, and the Independence Institute. Social science re licensed carry.
Newsom v. Albermarle, 354 F.3d 249 (4th Cir. 2003). A middle school threatened to punish a student for wearing an NRA shooting sports camp t-shirt. The Independence Institute amicus brief argued that shooting sports are wholesome and promote good character, and that speech promoting shooting sports cannot rationally be censored in a public school.
Short articles
Fourth Circuit amicus brief on Maryland handgun licensing law: Legal history before 1900 provides no support for licensing or training mandates for keeping an arm at home. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Aug. 10, 2022.
Kolbe v. Hogan: 4th Circuit requires strict scrutiny for Maryland ban on magazines and semiautomatics. Washington Post. Feb. 4, 2016.
Newsom Wins One. National Review Online. Jan. 8, 2004.
United States v. Daniels, No. 22-60596 (5th Cir. July 6, 2023). Amicus brief by Scholars of Second Amendment Law (F. Lee Francis, Nicholas J. Johnson, Donald E.J. Kilmer, David B. Kopel, George A. Mocsary Joseph V. Muha, Joseph E. Olson, Glenn H. Reynolds) and Independence Institute. The ban on firearms possession by every "user" of marijuana, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3), is contrary to history and tradition, as shown by historic laws pertaining to alcohol. Shooting or weaning firearms while intoxicated may be prohibited, but not use while sober.
Independence Institute amicus brief in United States v. Emerson. (Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, 2001.)
A Right of the People: The Meaning of the Emerson Decision. National Review Online. Oct. 25, 2001.
7th Circuit strikes ban on target practice by minors, and near-ban on firing ranges. Washington Post. Jan. 19, 2017.
Moore v. Madigan, key points. Volokh.com. Dec. 11, 2012. Kopel's The Second Amendment in the Nineteenth Century cited by the majority. Right to Arms in the Living Constitution cited by the dissent.
Ezell's doctrinal rules for the Second Amendment. Volokh Conspiracy. July 8, 2011.
7th Circuit Says Gun Registration is OK. Guns at Obama protests. Volokh.com. August 20, 2009.
Secret Weapon. Some 2nd Amendment lawyers help the gun-ban side. National Review Online. Sept. 22, 2003. Part 1 of a 2-part series on harmful gun rights lawsuits. The history of the Morton Grove cases, and of the NAACP's successful litigation strategy. Follow-up: Responses from Robert Kukla and Victor Quilici provide a different perspective on the case, which I should have included in the original article.
Briefs
Newsom v. B and L Productions, No 23-3793 (9th Cir. Feb. 6, 2023). Amicus brief of Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and the Independence Institute. There is no historical support for the California legislature's ban on all gun shows on government property.
Young v. Hawaii, No. 12-17808 (9th Cir. en banc 2020). Amicus brief for Professors of Second Amendment Law, Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, Cato Institute, Madison Society Foundation, California Gun Rights Foundation, Second Amendment Foundation, and Independence Institute. Hawaii ban on licensed open carry.
Rupp v. Becerra. No. 19-56004. 9th Circuit. Feb. 3, 2020. Amicus brief of Firearms Policy Coalition/Foundation, Second Amendment Foundation, Madison Society Foundation, California Gun Rights Foundation, and Independence Institute. By any standard, the semiautomatic firearms banned by California are in "common use," and therefore they may not be prohibited.
Pena v. Horan. Cert. petition from 9th Circuit case. No. 18-843. Feb. 1, 2019. Amicus brief for Second Amendment law professors, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, Mountain States Legal Foundation, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, Independence Institute, and Millennial Policy Center. California's "microstamping" mandate creates a de facto ban on all new models of semiautomatic pistols. The Ninth Circuit opinion uphold the ban was based on speculation and refusal to consider the plaintiffs' evidence.
Duncan v. Becerra. 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.
Teixeira v. Alameda County, California (9th Cir., en banc). Jan. 31, 2017. 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.
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.
Fyock v. Sunnyvale, no. 14-15408 (9th Cir. 2014). Amicus brief for Gun Owners of California and the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence. The history of magazines of greater than 10 rounds, and of magazine prohibition, in the United States.
Jackson v. San Francisco, 746 F.3d 953 (9th Cir. 2013). Amicus brief of California Rifle and Pistol Association Foundation and Independence Institute. Lead author Daniel Peterson. Requirement that guns at home must be locked up when they are not being carried on the person.
Peruta v. San Diego, 742 F.3d 1144 (9th Cir. 2014). Amicus brief of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, and the Independence Institute. 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. Same case in the District Court, 758 F.Supp.3d 1106 (S.D. Cal. 2010): amicus brief for Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership, Law Enforcement Alliance of America, and Independence Institute. Heller and McDonald recognize the right to bear arms.
McKay v. Hutchens (9th Cir. 2012). Amicus brief of the International Law Enforcement Educators & Trainers Association, International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, Inc., and the Independence Institute. Right to carry.
Law review article
Errors of Omission: Words Missing from the Ninth Circuit's Young v. State of Hawaii. 2021 University of Illinois Law Review Online 172 (May 13, 2021). With George A. Mocsary.
Short articles
Ninth Circuit holds there is no right to bear arms outside the home. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Apr. 1, 2021. With George Mocsary.
Magazine confiscation splits Third and Ninth Circuits: Analysis and history. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Sept. 8, 2020.
Preliminary injunction against dysfunctional California ammunition background checks. The law made it impossible for many law-abiding citizens to buy ammunition. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Apr. 24, 2020.
What arms are "common"? Amicus brief challenging California rifle ban. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Feb. 12, 2020.
District Court Permanently Enjoins California Magazine Confiscation Law. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Mar. 29, 2019.
Ninth Circuit strikes Hawaii law that only security guards may get handgun carry permits. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. July 23, 2018.
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.
Peruta v. San Diego, analyzed. Washington Post. June 11, 2016.
9th Circuit opinion on rights of gun stores applies standard, rigorous Second Amendment doctrines. Analysis of Teixeira v. County of Alameda. Washington Post. May 16, 2016.
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.
The Silveira Threat. How long will the Second Amendment live? National Review Online. Sept. 23, 2003. Part 2 of a 2-part series on harmful gun rights lawsuits.
Podcasts and videos
NRA News. Cam & Company. Aug. 7, 2018. Ninth Circuit upholds ban on new handgun models.
Devil's Advocate with Jon Caldara. Aug. 3, 2018. Recent Second Amendment cases in court.
NRA News. Cam & Company. July 23, 2018. 9th Circuit Rules There is Right to Open Carry.
The Second Amendment in the Tenth Circuit: Three Decades of (Mostly) Harmless Error. 86 Denver University Law Review 901 (2009). In the annual Tenth Circuit Survey.
Tenth Circuit split on gun ban for misdemeanants. Volokh.com. August 13, 2009.
District of Colorado
Gates v. Polis, No. 22-cv-1866-GPG-SKC (D. Colo., Nov. 30, 2023). Amicus brief of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, the Colorado Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association, the Western States Sheriffs Association, Sheriffs John Feyen (Larimer County), Gene Lillard (Montrose), Brett Powell (Logan), Todd Rowell (Mesa), Steve Reams (Weld), Aaron Shiplett (Baca), Lou Vallario (Garfield), Sam Zordel (Prowers), and the Independence Institute. Colorado ban on magazines over 15 rounds endangers public safety. Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief. Article about the brief: Law Enforcement Officers Are Part of "the People," Not Above Them. Law enforcement amicus brief against Colorado magazine ban. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Dec. 11, 2023.
The Right to Arms in Nineteenth Century Colorado. 95 Denver University Law Review 329 (2018).
State court standards of review for the right to arms, 50 Santa Clara Law Review 1113 (2010). With Clayton Cramer.
What State Constitutions Teach about the Second Amendment, 29 Northern Kentucky Law Review 845 (2002). Cited in Mosby v. Devine, 851 A.2d 1031, 1040 (R.I. 2004), majority opinion by Chief Justice Williams; State v. Hamdan, 264 Wis.2d 433, 467 n. 23, 665 N.W.2d 785, 802 n. 23 (Wisc. 2003), majority opinion by Justice David T. Prosser.
A Tale of Three Cities: The Right to Bear Arms in State Supreme Courts. Examines state court decisions in Colorado, Oregon, Ohio which upheld bans on so-called "assault weapons." 68 Temple Law Review 1177 (1995), with Clayton Cramer and Scott Hattrup.
Colorado
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.
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.
Regents of the University of of Colorado v. Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, 271 P.3d 496 (Colo. 2012). Amicus brief for the County Sheriffs of Colorado and the Independence Institute. Licensed carry on campus promotes public safety.
Robertson v. Denver 874 P.2d 325 (Colo. 1993). Colorado Attorney General reply brief in district court. Denver's "assault weapon" ban. Later proceeding, 978 P.2d 156 (Colo. App. 1999) (brief for plaintiffs, with Stephen Halbrook).
Illinois
People of the State of Illinois v. Vivian Claudine Brown. No 127201. Amicus brief of State's Attorney Stewart J. Umholtz, Professors Of Second Amendment Law, Independence Institute, Firearms Policy Foundation, and Firearms Policy Coalition. Nov. 17, 2021. The government cannot criminalize the simple keeping of an ordinary long gun in the home by a person who is not prohibited from possessing firearms.
People v. Vivian Claudine Brown. (Ill. 2019). Amicus brief on behalf of State’s Attorneys Stewart J. Umholtz and Brandon J. Zanotti, Professors Of Second Amendment Law, Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, Citizens Committee For The Right To Keep And Bear Arms, Millennial Policy Center, Independence Institute, and Carlisle Moody. Illinois FOID licensing law for firearms possession cannot be applied to peaceable possession of a lawful gun on one's own property by a person who is not prohibited from owning guns.
People v. Aguilar (Ill. 2013). Amicus brief of Professors Michael O'Shea, Nicholas Johnson, and David Kopel. (O'Shea was lead author). Illinois's complete prohibition of defensive carry in public places violates the Second Amendment.
Vermont
Vermont v. Misch, No. 2019–266 (Apr. 24, 2020). Amicus brief of Cato Institute, Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, and Independence Institute. Vermont magazine ban violates the text, history, tradition, and policy of the Vermont Constitution's right to arms. Statutory addendum.
Wisconsin
Rittenhouse trial. The Drew Mariani Show. Relevant Radio. Nov. 16, 2021. Kopel starts at 33:10.
David Kopel on amicus brief on behalf of CO sheriffs against magazine ban. Dan Caplis Show. KHOW 630 AM. Denver. June 7, 2019.
Deerfield, Illinois, gun confiscation law is blocked by state court. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. June 13, 2018.
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.
Louisiana amendment to strengthen right to arms, on November ballot. Volokh.com. Oct. 3, 2012.
Missouri Court Upholds Statute Against Gun Possession While Intoxicated. Volokh.com. November 20, 2009.
Indiana Court Vindicates Right to Self-Defense. Volokh.com. June 23, 2005.
W.V. Court Vindicates Self-Defense Right for Employees. Volokh.com, June 11, 2005.
Guns in the Dock. Liberty. Feb. 2003. Examines Nunn v. State and Salina v. Blaksley, two important 19th century cases involving the Second Amendment.
Subtopics: Legal History. Early America. Founding Era. Madison. 19th century. Civil War and Civil Rights. Bellesiles fraud. Philosophy.
For history of other countries, including England, see the Foreign Gun Control page. For philosophical issues involving religion, see the Religion page.
The history of arms bans before 1900. Gun Rights Policy Conference. Sept. 23, 2023. Covers handguns, Bowie knives, slungshots, and metal knuckles. 14 minutes audio.
The Theoretical Lethality Index is useful for military history but not for gun control policy. Professors Miller and Tucker miss the mark, while Saul Cornell disdains accuracy. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 1, 2022.
"The Right to Bear Arms" by Stephen Halbrook: Book Review. A book that may may help decide the Supreme Court's upcoming right to carry case. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. May 1, 2021.
The Second Amendment & The Prevention of Tyranny. Duke Law School. With professors George A. Mocsary, Charles Dunlap and Darrell Miller. Feb. 28, 2019.
Antecedents of the Second Amendment. Supplemental online chapter 16 to Firearms Law and the Second Amendment: Regulation, Rights, and Policy (Wolters Kluwer, 2d ed. 2017). With Nicholas J. Johnson, George Mocsary and Gregory Wallace. Covers ancient China, Greece, Rome, the Judeo-Christian tradition, and European political philosophy.
Truth About Gun Control animation. Animated video from publisher Encounter Books featuring a section of Kopel's book. YouTube.com. 4 minutes. July 11, 2013.
The History of Bans on Types of Arms Before 1900. Including handguns, Bowie knives, daggers, slungshots, brass knuckles, cannons and more. 50 Journal of Legislation (Notre Dame, forthcoming 2024). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.
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). The Right to Arms in Nineteenth Century Colorado. 95 Denver University Law Review 329 (2018).
The First Century of Right to Arms Litigation. 14 Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy 217 (2016).
The Posse Comitatus and the Office of
Sheriff: Armed Citizens Summoned to the Aid of Law Enforcement. 104 Journal of
Criminal Law and Criminology 671 (2014).
Sex, Drugs, Alcohol, Gambling, and Guns: The Synergistic Constitutional Effects.
6 Albany Government Law Review 307
(2013). With Trevor Burrus.
The Right to Arms in the
Living Constitution. 2009 Cardozo Law Review de Novo 99.
Comprehensive Bibliography of the Second Amendment in Law Reviews.
11 Journal on Firearms and Public Policy 1 (1999). Frank Brownell Museum of the Southwest. A small and superb firearms museum in northern New Mexico. Reason, Volokh Conspiracy. Aug. 31, 2019.Short articles
Some Topics and Learning Objectives for Second Amendment Courses. Second Thoughts (blog of the Firearms Law Center at Duke University). July 11, 2019.
The Kentucky Rifle. Epoch Times. July 4, 2019.
Two Viewpoints On The History Of Gun Regulation In America. Interviews with David Kopel and Adam Winkler. Wyoming Public Radio. Apr. 20, 2018. by Kamila Kudelska.
Why the anti-tyranny case for the 2nd Amendment shouldn't be dismissed so quickly. Vox. Aug. 22, 2016.
The history of LGBT gun-rights litigation. Washington Post. June 17, 2016.
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.
What Judge Reinhardt missed. Volokh.com. Aug. 5, 2012.
The "Collective Right" and the Second Amendment. NRA News. Sept. 4, 2011.
Cooking up a Collective Right: How a mythical monster nearly swallowed the Second Amendment whole. America's 1st Freedom. Sept. 2011.
Roscoe Pound on the Second Amendment. Volokh.com. February 2, 2010.
What's the Difference between a "Living Constitution" and a Dead Document? The "living Constitution" theory of interpretation should lead to strong protection for a vital Second Amendment. America's 1st Freedom. September 2009
An Army of One. (Attorneys General who supported the Second Amendment). National Review Online. May 29, 2001.
Right to Bear (Some) Arms. National Review Online. June 7, 2001.
Second Amendment: Kopel Defends Individualist View. Coverage of Kopel's debate with Denver University Law Professor Robert Hardaway and Ruchi Bhowmik of the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence. By Ari Armstrong. Colorado Freedom Report. May 8, 2000.
The First Installment of Our Legal Scholar Series: Dave Kopel. NRA. July 15, 2024. Interview re Kopel article How the British Gun Control Program Precipitated the American Revolution, 6 Charleston Law Review 283 (2012). 35 minutes.
The Larry Elder Show on Epoch TV. June 1, 2022. Biden's 2nd Amendment Lie. Starts at 13:00.
A glossary of militia law terms. Understanding the equipment early Americans had to possess. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. April 27, 2022.
The pro-slavery origins of American gun control. Complete Colorado. June 14, 2020.
April 19, 1775. Battles of Lexington and Concord: The American Revolution Begins. Constituting America. Feb. 24, 2020.
The gun guy and illegal militia founder who became President: George Washington. Our first President understood that armed citizens are essential to American freedom. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Feb. 17, 2020.
In US History, the Right to Arms Is Associated With Liberty, Legal Equality; Gun Control Isn't. Epoch Times. Aug. 21, 2019.
The American Indian foundation of American gun culture. Washington Post. Nov. 21, 2017.
Laws about gun ownership in early America. Volokh.com. Dec. 9, 2011.
America's Fascination with Firearms. The rigors of the country's frontier led to the proliferation of firearms and a deeply ingrained pro-gun culture. The World & I magazine, Oct. 2003.
The American Revolution against British Gun Control. Administrative and Regulatory Law News (American Bar Association). Vol. 37, no. 4, Summer 2012. Audio: British Gun Control in Colonial America. America's Fabric radio program. 1030 KVOI AM, Tucson, Ariz. Dec. 2017. Charles Heller reads Kopel's article.
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.
Armed and Educated. Allowing professors to carry licensed arms will enhance campus safety. Chronicle of Higher Education. Oct. 30, 2015.The Keystone of the Second Amendment: The Quakers, the Pennsylvania Constitution, and the Questionable Scholarship of Nathan Kozuskanich. 19 Widener Law Journal 277 (2010). With Clayton Cramer.
Credentials are No Substitute for Accuracy: Nathan Kozuskanich, Stephen Halbrook and the Role of the Historian. 19 Widener Law Journal 343 (2010). With Clayton Cramer.
The Religious Roots of the American Revolution and the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, 17 Journal on Firearms and Public Policy 167 (2005).
Tench Coxe and the Right to Keep and Bear Arms in the Early Republic. 7 William and Mary Bill of Rights Journal 347 (1999). With Stephen Halbrook.
Firearms technology and the original meaning of the Second Amendment. Washington Post. April 3, 2017.
Amendment II of the United States Constitution. Explains the key elements of the drafting, original meaning, and development of the right to arms. Constituting America. May 20, 2011.
In Liberty's Two Arms. Both clauses of the Second Amendment protect gun rights. Legal Times, Jan. 14, 2008. Applying Justice Stephen Breyer's book "Active Liberty" to the Second Amendment. PDF. HTML.
Our Second Amendment: The Original Perspective. St. George Tucker. The American Guardian. July 1998.
Faith of Our Fathers. Garry Wills translates the Second Amendment into Latin, in order to evade its plain meaning in English. National Review Online. Mar. 16, 2001.
Guns of Our Freedom: Celebrate Independence Day with a few rounds. National Review Online. July 1, 2000. In italiano.
Thomas Jefferson Forever. Chronicles. Celebrates the great Founder, and examines his statements about arms in a free society. In italiano.
blog: St. George Tucker, Saul Cornell, & Justice Stevens, 1/22/08. DC v. Heller: Nathan Kozuskanich's selective reading of American History, 3/9/08. St. George Tucker vs. Saul Cornell on the Second Amendment, 10/13/06
blog: George Mason, 4/1/06.
The Founders were well aware of continuing advances in arms technology. Building on what had come before, the Madison-Monroe research program led the way to the many innovations of the 19th century. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. May 26, 2023.
The Second Amendment versus anti-Catholicism. Washington Post. Nov. 20, 2015. James Madison expressly rejected anti-Catholic gun control laws; yet modern anti-gun advocates claim that these bigoted laws should be imposed on everyone.
Federalist 46. "The Influence of the State and Federal Governments Compared," by James Madison. Kopel examines how well Madison's expectations turned out in practice, and Madison's praise for the American "advantage of being armed." Constituting America, June 30, 2010.
Smearing Madison. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, in his zeal to reverse Heller and McDonald, misrepresents the Father of our Constitution. America's 1st Freedom. March 2011.
Justice Stephen Breyer and James Madison. NRA News. Feb. 27, 2011. YouTube video.
Fast Reloading of Guns in the 19th Century. Manufacturing improvements made affordable many types of guns that previously had been available only to the wealthy. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. June 5, 2023.
The legal history of bans on firearms and Bowie knives before 1900. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 20., 2022.
Bowie knife statutes 1837-1899. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 20, 2022.
Dred Scott and the Second Amendment. Kopel's Law and Liberty News, on Independence Institute Television (IITV). The upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case on the right to bear arms involves some of the same fundamental rights that were at issue in 1856 in Dred Scott v. Sanford.
Does the Second Amendment prohibit slavery? What Lysander Spooner argued in 1845 became the law of the land in 1868. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. June 19, 2020.
Gun control’s racist history still being written. Complete Colorado. June 9, 2020.
The Right to Arms in Nineteenth Century Colorado. 95 Denver University Law Review 329 (2018).
Firearms Law and the Second Amendment. Chapter 5. The Early Republic, and the Antebellum Era. 55 minutes. July 20, 2012.
The Second Amendment in the Nineteenth Century. 1998 BYU Law Review 1359. Cited in Peruta v. County of San Diego, 824 F.3d 919, 937 (9th Cir. 2016) (en banc) (Fletcher, J.). State v. DeCiccio, 315 Conn. 79; 105 A.3d 165 (2014). Peruta v. San Diego, 742 F.3d 1144, 1163 (9th Cir. 2014). Moore v. Madigan, 702 F.3d 933, 940, 948 (7th Cir. 2012) (majority opinion of Judge Posner). Oregon v. Christian, 274 P.3d 262, 280 n.15, 249 Or. App. 1, 32 n.15 (Or. Ct. App. 2012) (Edmonds, J., dissenting). Ezell v. City of Chicago, 651 F.3d 684, 702 n. 11 (7th Cir. 2011) (Judge Sykes) (commending Kopel article as showing the proper model of "originalist interpretive method as applied to the Second Amendment."). Silveira v. Lockyer, 328 F.3d 567, 585 n. 92 (9th Cir. 2003) (Opinion by Judge Kleinfeld, joined by Judges Kozinski, O'Scannlain, and T.G. Nelson, dissenting from denial of petition for rehearing en banc). Gamble v. United States, 30 A.3d 161, 161 n.7 (D.C. App. 2011) (Associate Judge Fisher).
Don't Mess with (Armed) Texans. The real lesson of the Alamo. National Review Online. April 8, 2004.
A Collaborative Effort. Book review of: The Battle of New Orleans: Andrew Jackson and America's First Military Victory, by Robert V. Remini. Chronicles magazine, July 2000
The Racist Influence on Gun Control Laws. When Ida B. Wells urged blacks to use repeating rifles for defense against lynch mobs, gun control advocates invented a new type of gun licensing. Epoch Times. Feb. 5, 2019.
The Racist Origin of Gun Control Laws. The Hill. Aug. 22, 2017. With Joseph Greenlee.
Freedom Fighters. Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass. America's 1st Freedom. Feb. 2016.
Book review of "This Nonviolent Stuff'll Get You Killed: How Guns Made the Civil Rights Movement Possible." 35 Cato Journal 443 (2015).
The Dark Secret of Jim Crow and the Racist Roots of Gun Control. How Jim Crow laws in the late 19th century created the foundation for modern anti-gun laws. America's 1st Freedom. March 2011.
The story of the armed community organizers. The civil rights movement. Volokh.com. February 22, 2010.
How the right to arms saved the non-violent civil rights protesters. Volokh.com. February 8, 2010.
Stephen Halbrook: Securing Civil Rights. Kopel interviews Halbrook about Halbrook's career, and his new book on the 14th Amendment. America's 1st Freedom, Oct. 2010.
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.
Albion Tourgee and the Second Amendment. Volokh.com. Dec. 4, 2006.
Brothers In Arms. How civil rights flowed from a rifle barrel. Armed black resistance to race riots in the 20th century. Reason.com, Feb. 24, 2005.
The Klan's Favorite Law: Gun control in the postwar South. Reason.com, Feb. 15, 2005.
Blog: Condoleezza Rice and the Second Amendment, 11/19/04.
Disarming Errors. Book review of Michael Bellesiles' "Arming America." National Review, print edition. Oct. 9, 2000. With Clayton Cramer. This was the first printed article to accuse Bellesiles of fraud.
blog: New developments in Bellesiles' record of lies, 4/10/02. The Poulshock fraud in 1966 and the contrasts with the publisher's handling of the fraudulent Bellesiles book, 3/15/02. Bellesiles gets a new grant, 3/5/02 (the grant was later rescinded).
Dave Kopel on Guns and Tyranny. Self in Society, with Ari Armstrong. June 15, 2022. 65 mins.
Interview with David Harsanyi, author of "First Freedom: A Ride Through America's Enduring History with the Gun." Independence Institute. Dec. 12, 2018.
The Maryland Minute Men of 1942: Armed citizens summoned to homeland defense. Washington Post. Dec. 7, 2015.
Sergeant York. Great Hero of the Great War. America's 1st Freedom, Feb. 2005.
Gun Bans and "Schindler's List". Independence Institute. Aug. 24, 1994. With William R. Tonso.
D-Day was almost a German Holiday. June 1994. With Dan Gifford.
Maryland Governor Herbert O'Conor Calls Forth the Militia in WWII. Volokh.com, Feb. 13, 2008.
For more on philosophical issues involving religion, see the Religion page.
What Do the Bible and Christian Tradition Say About Self Defence, Gun Rights, and Liberty? More Christ. 91 minutes. Discussion of Kopel's book The Morality of Self-Defense and Military Action: The Judeo-Christian Tradition. (Praeger, 2017).
Two Cheers for Violence. Pacifists often claim that violence only begets violence. They are wrong. Liberty. Sept. 2004.
Bodin, Beccaria, and Bastiat. Diverse views on arms and the use of force in society from important philosophers: a French absolutist, the Italian father of criminology, and a French liberal. Liberty magazine. En italiano.
Rudyard Kipling and Gun Control, Volokh.com. Nov. 28, 2005.
Subtopics: The Age of Obama. 2008 Election. 2006 Election. 2003-04 Elections. 2002 Election and Politics. 2000 Election. Earlier Elections.
Duke Center for Firearms Law. A Conversation with Dave Kopel. Apr. 28, 2020. Guns in the pandemic. 14 mins.
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.
2017 is shaping up to be another winning year for gun owners. The Hill. April 25, 2017. With Joseph Greenlee.
Restoring the Right to Keep and Bear Arms in Cato Handbook for Policymakers (8th ed. 2017). With Trevor Burrus and Robert A. Levy.
NRA Members tipped the balance for Trump. Cam & Company. NRA News. Nov. 14, 2016.
The Bad and Good of Obama's Executive Orders on Guns. Cato Institute daily podcast. Jan. 7, 2016.
Obama's executive actions on guns: Legal analysis. Washington Post. Jan. 5, 2016.
Will Obama's action on guns help prevent deaths? PBS NewsHour. Video of Kopel and "Everytown" head John Feinblatt. PBS Newshour. Jan. 5, 2016.
Obama Unveils Gun Control Measures. CTV (Canada). Jan. 5, 2016.
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.
Guns, Law and Society: Understanding the Arguments. Dart Center. Arizona State University. May 29, 2015.
A survey of legislation on Second Amendment issues in 2015. Washington Post. July 20, 2015. So far this year, 28 states have enacted legislation which expands protections of Second Amendment rights, and one state has enacted legislation to reduce those rights.
Time For a Real Response. Now that the gun-control circus is over, we can actually address mass violence. National Review Online. Apr. 19, 2013.
The Problem Was With the Legislation. Kopel featured in the NY Times Room for Debate series 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.
The Problems of Toomey-Manchin. National Review Online. Apr. 17, 2013.
The "Pro-Gun" Provisions of Manchin-Toomey are Actually a Bonanza of Gun Control. Volokh.com. Apr. 15, 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.
First item of new post-election "flexibility": U.N. gun control. Volokh.com. Nov. 7, 2012.
Will gun owners get caught sleeping? Polling data from the past half-century show tremendous progress in public support for Second Amendment rights. But those gains could be reversed if Second Amendment supporters become apathetic. America's 1st Freedom. Dec. 2011.
Barack Obama and Gun Control: Effective and Shrewd. Encyclopedia Britannica blog. Dec. 14, 2010.
Barack Obama and Gun Control: Effective and Shrewd. NRA News. Dec. 16, 2010. YouTube video.
Trimming Citizens. Efforts to restrict the free speech rights which had been protected in the Citizens United case. America's 1st Freedom, May 2010.
Restoring the Right to Bear Arms in the Cato Handbook for Policymakers (2009, 7th ed.). With Robert A. Levy.
Stick to Your Guns, Senator. Giving in to the anti-gun lobby will not help Kirsten Gillibrand stay in office. National Review Online. Feb. 24, 2009.
Holder Must Go. Attorney General Eric Holder's lies and half-truths in the "Fast and Furious" aftermath are nothing new. A look at the past shows a long history of dishonesty and disdain for the truth and the law. America's 1st Freedom. Mar. 2012.
OSHEESH! How President Obama's latest anti-gun appointee--proposed OSHA Director David Michaels--could place sweeping restrictions on your Right to Keep and Bear Arms. America's 1st Freedom. November 2009.
Koh, No! President Barack Obama continues to fill his administration with devout gun-ban advocates, this time appointing transnationalist Harold Koh as legal adviser to the Department of State. America's 1st Freedom. July 2009.
The Pieces Fall into Place. With Gil Kerlikowske, President Obama continues the trend of appointing gun-haters to important positions in his administration. America's 1st Freedom, May 2009.
Education at the Extremez, America's 1st Freedom, Apr. 2009. Education Secretary Arne Duncan.
The Whole World is Watching. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's potential effect on Second Amendment rights. America's 1st Freedom. March 2009.
Strike Two! Attorney General Eric Holder and the Second Amendment. America's 1st Freedom. Feb. 2009.
Secretary of State Clinton and the Second Amendment. Dave Kopel's Second Amendment Podcast. Jan. 30, 2009. MP3.
Attorney General nominee Eric Holder. Jan. 23, 2009. Dave Kopel's Second Amendment Podcast. MP3.
Gun Control. Issue 24 of the "Change in Command" series, explaining how Americans view the impending inauguration of President Obama. January 2009.
Beware the Rahm. After pledging his support for the Second Amendment during the campaign, President-elect Barack Obama appoints devout gun-ban supporter Rahm Emanuel as his chief of staff. America's 1st Freedom. Jan. 2009.
Eric Holder on Firearms Policy. Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 20, 2008.
Second Amendment results, final. Volokh.com. Nov. 7, 2012.
Second Amendment election results. Volokh.com. Nov. 6, 2012.
Under the Gun. A Second Amendment look at the elections. National Review Online. Oct. 29, 2012.
Here's What Could Happen If You Don't Defeat Obama! Who knows what Obama has in store for America if he is elected to a second term, but if we take him at his word, it is not good for gun owners. America's 1st Freedom. Nov. 2012.
The Second Amendment's Great Election night. Washington Examiner. Nov. 4, 2010.
NRA News. Kopel analyzes the 2010 election results. Video. Nov. 3, 2010.
Gun Rights and the 2010 House Elections. The New Ledger. Oct. 22, 2010.
NRA Supports Pro-Gun Democrats, and Many Democrats Support the Second Amendment. Volokh.com. October 8, 2010.
Ad targeting Buck misfires. Misleading claims about Buck's role in standing up against political persecution of a firearms dealer. WhoSaidYouSaid.com, Oct. 7, 2010.
Remember the imaginary "National Republican Association"? Volokh.com. October 6, 2010.
Bloomberg, Bennet and gun control. Bennet cosponsors the billionaire mayor's anti-gun law. WhoSaidYouSaid.com, Oct. 4, 2010.
Gun Rights and the 2010 Senate Elections. The New Ledger. Sept. 27, 2010.
Dale Peterson Returns, Even Worse. Volokh.com. June 17, 2010.
The Dale Peterson Ad. Volokh.com. June 1, 2010.
Another good night for the Second Amendment. Off-year elections in Virginia and New Jersey. November 4, 2009.
The Second Amendment's Great Election night. The New Ledger. Nov. 4, 2010.
How the Second Amendment Fared Tonight. Volokh Conspiracy. Nov. 5, 2008.
Obama and McCain: Stark contrast on gun rights. Denver Post. Nov. 3, 2008.
Gunning for Victory. Second Amendment voter guide. National Review Online. October 30, 2008.
When Obama Wrestles with Heller. Barack Obama is a tremendous threat to the Heller decision. He has an extreme anti-gun record. The persons being named as his potential Supreme Court and Cabinet nominees have established records of anti-rights activism. America's 1st Freedom. October 2008.
FactCheck Flubs Obama Gun Fact Check. The NRA's claims about Obama's anti-gun views are supported by his voting record. The Volokh Conspiracy weblog. Sept. 23, 2008.
Gun Owners for Hillary? Townhall.com, May 8, 2008.
The Democrats and Gun Control. The Clinton and Obama records belie their claims to support the Second Amendment. Wall Street Journal. April 17, 2008.
Obama's Other Spiritual Mentor: Rev. Michael Pfleger. The man whom Obama described as one of his three spiritual mentors is a Farrakhan devotee who hates the Second Amendment. Volokh Conspiracy weblog. Apr. 8, 2008.
Gun Rights and Election '08. Kopel analyzes McCain, Clinton, and Obama. Feb. 26, 2008. MP3.
Ron's Revolution: Could Dr. Paul really surprise us all? National Review Online, Oct. 9, 2007.
Romney, a Second Amendment Killer? Bill Richardson for president!? National Review Online, April 11, 2007.
blog: Hillary Clinton's growing appeal to the gun vote, 5/10/08, 4/13/08.
Federal year in review, 2005. Volokh.com. Jan. 3, 2006.
Arms-Bearing Can Bear the Defeat. The Second Amendment emerges from the election relatively unscathed. National Review Online, Nov. 8, 2006.
2006 Second Amendment Election Guide. All the Governor, Senate, and key House races. Oct. 31, 2006.
blog: Texas Primary and the RKBA, Mar. 8, 2006.
Arms Alive. The Second Amendment triumphed on Election Day. National Review Online. Nov. 3, 2004.
Key Second Amendment Races. Election guide to U.S. Senate, U.S. House, and Governor's Races. Nov. 2, 2004.
Unarmed for the Election. Arnold Schwarzenegger doesn't know the basics of California gun laws. National Review Online. Sept. 30, 2003.
blog: Kerry's gun, 9/7/04.
Second Wins and Losses. How the Second Amendment made out. National Review Online. Nov.6, 2002.
A Second Amendment Voting Guide. Journey through the states and offices. National Review Online. Nov.4, 2002.
Second Amendment Cheat Sheet II. More competitive races for pro-gun Americans to watch. National Review Online. Nov. 4, 2000.
Second Amendment Cheat Sheet. The most competitive races for pro-gun Americans to watch. National Review Online. Nov. 3, 2000.
Gore's Privileged Gun Class. Government employees aren't superior to the governed. National Review Online. Oct. 31, 2000.
Keep It with the People. Gore's shifting stances on guns, the Waxman Department of Justice letter on the Second Amendment, and the Emerson case. National Review Online. Oct. 24, 2000.
Getting Columbine Right. More gun control wouldn't have stopped this tragedy. You're wrong, Al. National Review Online. Oct. 12, 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 magazine. Sept. 2000.
Gore Screws on the Silencer. Al goes mum on guns to avoid a Dukakis-like blunder. National Review Online. Aug. 29, 2000.
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.
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.
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.
Who is Al Gore Kidding? On guns and the National Zoo, Gore is either dishonest or stupid. National Review Online, Apr. 27, 2000. With Clayton Cramer.
Does the National Rifle Association Influence Federal Elections? Examines the 1994 and 1994 House of Representatives elections. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 8-2006. December 2006. By Christopher B. Kenny, Michael McBurnett & David J. Bordua.
The Gun Issue in the 1988 Presidential Election. How Dukakis's gun prohibition stand turned what could have been a close race into a landslide. Gun World. 1989.
Against All Odds. The defeat of the handgun confiscation initiative in Massachusetts in 1976. America's 1st Freedom. Feb. 2012.
Anti-gun groups and individuals. Pro-gun groups and individuals. Other topics.
The Great Gun Control War of the 20th Century--and its Lessons for Today. 39 Fordham Urban Law Journal 1257 (2012).
The paranoid style in gun control politics. Bloomberg's "The Trace" fabricates a conspiracy about amicus brief writers who adhere to Supreme Court Rules. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Oct. 17, 2022.
Our right to arms faces a death by a thousand cuts. The long-term strategy of the gun ban lobby. Colorado Politics. Apr. 8, 2020.
Sneak Attack on Washington State. America's 1st Freedom. Sept. 2018.
NRA News. Cam & Company. July 20, 2018. ACLU throws 2nd Amendment under the bus.
The Million Mom March: Mass Mobilization Against Guns. In 2000, the Million Mom March brought hundreds of thousands of people together to demonstrate against guns. Reason.com. March 22, 2018.
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.
Washing-Con. America's 1st Freedom. Sept. 2014. How Michael Bloomberg is twisting the gun control debate in the Evergreen State.
Not Watts She Seems. America's 1st Freedom. Sept. 2014. Shannon Watts and her "Moms Demand" group are dishonest.
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.
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.
Tragedy's Playbook: Bloomberg's PR manual for exploiting crimes. America's 1st Freedom. Nov. 2013.The Bernardine Dohrn of the early 20th century: The terrorist professor at U of Texas law school. Volokh.com. May 24, 2010.
blog: Inaccurate Statement by Brady Campaign's head, 6/13/08. Hurray for Jim and Sarah Brady, 4/1/06.
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.
Book review: One Nation Under Guns: an Essay on an American Epidemic. By Arnie Grossman, Introduction by Gary Hart. Fulcrum Publishing, Golden, Colorado (2006). An angry book by a leading Colorado anti-gun activist reveals how some persons drive themselves to rage because they greatly misunderstand gun laws.
Targeting Liberties. Montgomery County Police Chief Moose bungled the sniper case while recklessly abusing civil liberty. Chronicles, July 2003. With Paul Blackman. PDF of pre-publication galleys.
blog: Moose's bogus lawsuit, 8/8/03.
Klanwatch Project. Part of the work of fundraising conman Morris Dees and his "Southern Poverty Law Center." Entry in Guns in American Society: An Encyclopedia of History, Politics, Culture and the Law (Gregg Lee Carter ed., ABC-CLIO 2002).
Demon's in the Details. Dems try to put together a new gun strategy, but wind up in the same place -- falsely demonizing gun owners. National Review Online. July 24, 2001.
Not Quite a Million Moms. National Review Online. May 15, 2001.
Bigoted Moms Tempered. National Review Online. May 11, 2001.
Gunning for Hysteria. The long-term objectives of the anti-gun lobbies. National Review Online. Feb 23, 2001.
Citibank Goes PC. But then relents when it finds that being against the Second Amendment is bad business. National Review Online. Sept. 20, 2000. With Dave Gowan.
The Million Mom March. Much Less than Advertised. National Review Online, May, 12, 2000.
The Independence Institute's exposed Denver Mayor Wellington Webb's 1991 campaign promise to issue handgun carry permits, and his attempt to obtain NRA election support. Read Wellington Webb's pro-NRA, pro-handgun-carrying letter yourself.
Gun Rights Policy Conference, Oct. 1, 2022. Kopel interview by Firearms Policy Coalition. 21 minutes.
How to Speak to New Gun Owners. America's 1st Freedom. Feb. 2021.
The NRA Has Always Stood For Freedom. America's 1st Freedom. Jan. 2021. (published Dec. 24, 2020).
Your NRA's Deep Connection to Memorial Day. Founded in 1871, the NRA began by dedicating itself to the safety of American soldiers. America's 1st Freedom. May 24, 2020.
Gun Control Crowd Directs Vitriol at NRA. America's 1st Freedom. May 2018. The same tactics that have always been used by hate groups against civil rights organizations and religious or ethnic groups targeted for destruction: dehumanization, conspiracy theories, ostracism, silencing, and delegalization.
The history of LGBT gun-rights litigation. Washington Post. June 17, 2016.
Does the National Rifle Association Influence Federal Elections? Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 8-2006. December 2006. Examines the 1994 and 1994 House of Representatives elections. By Christopher B. Kenny, Michael McBurnett & David J. Bordua. PDF.
The N.R.A. Is Still Vital, Because the 2nd Amendment Is. Kopel in the NY Times Room for Debate series on the question, "Is the gun lobby invincible?" New York Times. Dec. 17, 2012.
Podcast with NRA President David Keene. What it's like to be president of the NRA, political strategies, how to defeat the Michael Bloombergs of the world. MP3. 52 minutes. Feb. 7, 2013.
Public opinion about the National Rifle Association. Volokh.com. June 2, 2012.
Harold Volkmer, R.I.P. A tribute to the great Missouri Democrat who led the way to enactment of the Firearms Owner's Protection Acts, one of the most significant pieces of civil rights legislation in the history of Congress. The Volokh Conspiracy. April 18, 2011.
Aaron Zelman, R.I.P. Volokh.com. January 4, 2011.
NRA Convention report. Volokh.com. May 17, 2010.
Speech Freed! The Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United restores the free speech of civil rights groups, such as the NRA. America's 1st Freedom. April 2010.
Ambrose E. Burnside. General, Governor, Senator, Civil Rights Activist and First President of the NRA. America's 1st Freedom. Nov. 2004. With Paul Gallant & Joanne Eisen. (This web version is slightly longer than the text which was printed in the magazine, and is therefore laid out somewhat differently.)
City Council v. NRA. New York City Council is upset that NRA will attend Republican Convention. National Review Online. Aug. 30, 2004. With Paul Blackman.
The Hero of Gettysburg. Winfield Scott Hancock shot straight. National Review Online. July 2, 2004. With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen. Biography of the 8th President of the National Rifle Association.
Misfiring at Harlon Carter. National Review Online. Aug. 14, 2000.
Scoundrel Time is Back. A response to the false charge that Larry Pratt, President of Gun Owners of America, is a racist. Denver Post, Feb. 20, 1996.
George Bush and the NRA. Gun World. 1996.
Good Riddance George. Paul Danish and David Kopel bid farewell to George Bush as an NRA member. May 1995.
Free "2023 Supplement" for "Firearms Law and the Second Amendment." Covering the many developments in 2022-23. Reason/Volokh Conspiracy. Sept. 6, 2023
Cited by Both Sides. University of Wyoming Firearms Research Center. Sept. 13, 2023.
Americans Have Always Owned New Gun Designs. America's 1st Freedom. Apr. 4, 2021.
How Does The Independence Institute Make A Real Difference For Gun Rights? GunLawShow.com, Dec. 2011.
Somebody Else's Guns. Why gun owners are mistaken to imagine that gun controls aimed at other people pose no threat to gun ownership for everyone. Blue Press. May 1994.
Things You Can Do to Defend Your Gun Rights. (Electronic Edition). Alan Gottlieb and Dave Kopel. Book.
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