Books and Journal Articles

Books

The Morality of Self-Defense and Military Action: The Judeo-Christian Tradition. (Praeger, 2017).

Rules for State Legislators: Jerry Kopel's Guide (2015). With Jerry Kopel.

A Conspiracy Against Obamacare: The Volokh Conspiracy and the Affordable Care Act (Palgrave MacMillan, 2013). Co-authored.

The Truth About Gun Control. (Encounter Books, 2013). 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.

Firearms Law and the Second Amendment: Regulation, Rights, and Policy (Aspen Publishers 2012). The first law school textbook on the Second Amendment. With Nicholas J. Johnson, Michael P. O'Shea, and George Mocsary. Supplement online chapters, free to the public: Chapter 12 – Social Science. Chapter 13 – International Law. Chapter 14 – Comparative Law. Podcasts on the book: Chapter 7, A New and Dangerous Century. Chapter 6, Reconstruction and the late 19th Century. Chapter 5, The Early Republic, and the Antebellum Era. Chapter 4, The new Constitution and the Second Amendment. Chapter 3, The Colonies and the Revolution. Chapter 2, Antecedents of the Second Amendment: From Confucius to the British Whigs. Chapter 1, An introduction to firearms laws and firearms function.

Aiming for Liberty: The Past, Present, And Future of Freedom and Self-Defense (Merril Press, 2009). Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.

The Heller Case: Gun Rights Affirmed! (Bloomfield Press, 2008). With Alan Korwin

Supreme Court Gun Cases (Bloomfield Press, 2003). With Alan Korwin and Stephen Halbrook.

Gun Control and Gun Rights: A Reader and Guide (New York University Press, 2002). With Andrew McClurg and Brannon Denning.

Antitrust After Microsoft. (Chicago: Heartland Institute, 2001). Summary of the book. Review. Polski/Polish.

E se avessimo preso la Columbine seriamente? in Io sparo che me la cavo: Quando essere armati è un diritto. di David Kopel & Carlo Stagnaro. (Leonardo Facco Editore, 2000). Argomenti a favore della libertà di portare armi. (ebook edition 2007).

RCRA Demystified: The Professional's Guide to Hazardous Waste Law (Washington: Environmental Law Institute, 1996). An annotated guide to Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. With Linda Rockwood and Kimberly Temple.

No More Wacos: What's Wrong with Federal Law Enforcement, and How to Fix It (Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1997). With Paul Blackman. Winner of the 1997 Thomas S. Szasz Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Cause of Civil Liberties, presented by the Center for Independent Thought.

Guns: Who Should Have Them? (Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1995).

The Samurai, the Mountie, and the Cowboy: Should America Adopt the Gun Controls of Other Democracies? (Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1992). Named 1992 Book of the Year by the American Society of Criminology Division of International Criminology. Review by Nicholas Johnson, Public Interest Law Review. Review by the Foreign Military Studies Office, Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas.

Gun Control in Great Britain: Saving Lives or Constricting Liberty? (Chicago: University of Illinois at Chicago, Office of International Criminal Justice, 1992).

More Things You Can Do to Protect Your Gun Rights (Merril Press, 1995). With Alan Gottlieb.

Things You Can Do to Protect Your Gun Rights (Merril Press, 1993). With Alan Gottlieb.

The Highbrow in American Politics: Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. and the Role of the Intellectual in Politics. Honors Thesis in History, Brown University, May 1982. Awarded Highest Honors, and National Geographic Society Prize.

And Justice for Some: The Reagan Administration and the Rule of Law in America. Co-author of report issued by the National Organization of Law Students and Professors for Responsible Government, Oct. 1984.

Scholarly Articles

The Right to Arms in Nineteenth Century Colorado. 95 Denver University Law Review (forthcoming 2018).

The Federal Circuits' Second Amendment Doctrines. 61 St. Louis University Law Journal 193 (2017). With Joseph G.S. Greenlee.

The First Century of Right to Arms Litigation. 14 Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy 127 (2016).

Lyman Trumbull: Author of the Thirteenth Amendment, Author of the Civil Rights Act, and the First Second Amendment Lawyer. 47 Loyola University Chicago Law Journal 1117 (2016).

Background Checks for Firearms Sales and Loans: Law, History, and Policy. 53 Harvard Journal on Legislation 303 (2016).

Book review of "This Nonviolent Stuff'll Get You Killed: How Guns Made the Civil Rights Movement Possible." 35 Cato Journal 443 (2015).

Reforming Mental Health Law to Protect Public Safety and Help the Severely Mentally Ill. 58 Howard Law Journal 715 (2015). With Clayton Cramer.

The History of Firearms Magazines and of Magazine Prohibition. 78 Albany Law Review 849 (2015). Cited in United States v. Gonzalez, 792 F.3d 534 (5th Cir. 2015); Bolden v. State, --- So.3d ----, 2015 WL 5511491 (Ala. Ct. Crim. App. 2015) (Welch, J., dissenting); Rocky Mountain Gun Owners v. Hickenlooper, No. 14CA2178, 2016 WL 1165542 (Colo. App., Mar. 24, 2016) (Graham, J., dissenting).

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 (2015).

From Razing a Village to Razing the Constitution: The Branch Davidian Stand-Off Twenty Years Later. 36 Reason Papers 72 (2014). With Paul Blackman.

The First Amendment Guide to the Second Amendment. 81 Tennessee Law Review 419 (2014).

Does the Second Amendment Protect Firearms Commerce? 127 Harvard Law Review 230 (2014). Cited in Teixeira v. County of Alameda, 822 F.3d 1047 (9th Cir. 2016); Bonidy v. United States Postal Service, 790 F.3d 1121 (10th Cir. 2015) (Tymkovich, J., concurring & dissenting); United States v. Hosford, 82 F.Supp.3d 660 (D. Md. 2015).

Knives and the Second Amendment. 47 University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform 175 (2013). With Clayton Cramer and Joseph Olson. Cited in Seattle v. Evans, 184 Wash.2d 856 (Wash. 2015) (by both majority and dissent); State v. Herrmann (Wisc. App., Nov. 24, 2015), no. 2015AP53–CR, 2015 WL 7432597; State v. DeCiccio, 315 Conn. 79; 105 A.3d 165 (2014); People of the State of New York v. Anthony Trowells. No. 3015/2013 (Aug. 4, 2014; Supreme Court, Bronx County, Part 92) (Justice Troy Webber).

Mexico's Gun Control Laws: A Model for the United States? 18 Texas Review of Law & Politics 27 (2013).

Ancient Hebrew Militia Law. 90 Denver University Law Review Online 175 (2013).

Evolving Christian Attitudes Towards Personal and National Self-defense. 45 Connecticut Law Review 1709 (2013). Analyzes changes in Christian thought about the use of force, from the 19th to the 21st century.

Sex, Drugs, Alcohol, Gambling, and Guns: The Synergistic Constitutional Effects. 6 Albany Government Law Review 306 (2013). With Trevor Burrus.

The American Revolution against British Gun Control. Administrative and Regulatory Law News (American Bar Association). Vol. 37, no. 4, Summer 2012.

The Great Gun Control War of the 20th Century--and its Lessons for Today. 39 Fordham Urban Law Journal 1257 (2012).

Mexico's Federal Law of Firearms and Explosives. 13 Engage 43 (no. 1, Mar. 2012).

Reducing the Drug War's Damage to Government Budgets. 35 Harvard Journal of Law & Policy 543 (2012). With Trevor Burrus.

How the British Gun Control Program Precipitated the American Revolution. 38 Charleston Law Review 283 (2012).

The PPACA in Wonderland. 38 American Journal of Law & Medicine 269 (2012). With Gary S. Lawson.

Bad News for John Marshall. 121 Yale Law Journal Online 529 (2012). With Gary S. Lawson. Why Obamacare advocates are wrong to claim that finding the mandate unconstitutional will wreck modern constitutional law. HTML. PDF.

The Incidental Unconstitutionality of the Individual Mandate. Legal Workshop. Feb. 6, 2012. With Gary S. Lawson.

Bad News for Professor Koppelman: The Incidental Unconstitutionality of the Individual Mandate. 121 Yale Law Journal Online 267 (2011). With Gary Lawson. PDF HTML.

"Health Laws of Every Description": John Marshall's Ruling on a Federal Health Care Law. 12 Engage (no. 1, June 2011): 49-54. With Robert G. Natelson.

Commerce in the Commerce Clause: A Response to Jack Balkin. 109 Michigan Law Review First Impressions 55 (2010). With Robert G. Natelson.

How Many Global Deaths from Arms? Reasons to Question the 740,000 Factoid being used to Promote the Arms Trade Treaty. 5 NYU Journal of Law & Liberty 672 (2010). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

Justice for All: A Better Path to Global Firearms Control. 2 Jindal Global L. Rev. 198 (2010). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

The Arms Trade Treaty: Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Prospects for Arms Embargoes on Human Rights Violators, 114 Penn State Law Review 891 (2010). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen. At the end of this document: Une version de 8 pages de ce document est disponible en français. El extracto está disponible en español.

State court standards of review for the right to arms, 50 Santa Clara Law Review 1113 (2010). With Clayton Cramer.

The Right to Arms in the Living Constitution. 2010 Cardozo Law Review de Novo 99. Cited in Moore v. Madigan, 702 F.3d 933, (7th Cir. 2012) (Williams, J., dissenting).

The Keystone of the Second Amendment: Quakers, the Pennsylvania Constitution, and the Questionable Scholarship of Nathan Kozuskanich. 19 Widener Law Journal 271 (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.

Connecting Laypeople with the Law through Blogs. Denver University Law Review DUProcess, Oct. 19, 2009. Part of the symposium Legal Scholarship in the Internet Age.

Pretend "Gun-free" School Zones: A Deadly Legal Fiction. 42 Connecticut Law Review 515 (2009). Cited in Bach v. New Hampshire Department of Safety. --- A.3d ----, 2016 WL 3086130 (N.H. 2016); Students for Concealed Carry on Campus v. Regents of University of Colorado, 280 P.3d 18, 25 (Colo. App. 2010) (Judge Hawthorne).

Unraveling Judicial Restraint: Guns, Abortion, and the Faux Conservatism of J. Harvie Wilkinson, III. 25 Journal of Law & Politics 1 (2009) (University of Virginia). 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.

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. Cited in United States v. McCane, 573 F.3d 1037, 1049 n.2 (10th Cir. 2009) (concurring opinion by Judge Tymkovich).

To Heller and Back. Assessing the constitutionality of particular gun controls post-Heller. 25 Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice 106 (2009). With Paul Blackman.

The Natural Right of Self-defense: Heller's Lesson for the World. Symposium issue on the Heller case. 59 Syracuse Law Review 235 (2009). Cited in United States v. Skoien, 587 F.3d 803, 806 n.2 (7th Cir. 2009) (opinion by Judge Sykes).

Christian Pacifism Before Constantine. Working paper. June 12, 2008.

Pacifist-Aggressives vs. the Second Amendment: An Analysis of Modern Philosophies of Compulsory Non-violence. 3 Charleston Law Review 1 (2008).

Is There a Relationship between Guns and Freedom? Comparative Results from 59 Nations. 13 Texas Review of Law & Politics 1 (2008). With Carl Moody & Howard Nemerov.

Human Rights and Gun Confiscation. 26 Quinnipiac Law Review 383 (2008). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen. Examines human rights abuses in gun confiscation programs in Kenya and Uganda, and in South Africa's quasi-confiscatory licensing law. Also provides the most complete collection ever presented of international survey data about why people in various countries own guns.

Dhimmitude and Disarmament. 18 George Mason University Civil Rights Law Journal 305 (2008).

The Human Right of Self-Defense. 22 BYU Journal of Public Law 43 (2008). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

Self-defense in Asian Religions. 2 Liberty Law Review 79 (2007).

Armed Resistance to the Holocaust. 19 Journal of Firearms & Public Policy 144 (2007). Earlier version in HTML. Earlier version in Polish/Polski.

The Gold Standard of Gun Control. 2 Journal of Law, Economics & Policy 417 (2006). Book review of Joyce Malcolm's "Guns and Violence: The English Experience." In HTML. With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

The Catholic Second Amendment. 29 Hamline Law Review 519 (2006). HTML.

Is Resisting Genocide a Human Right? 81 Notre Dame Law Review 1275 (2006). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

The Scottish and English Religious Roots of the American Right to Arms: Buchanan, Rutherford, Locke, Sidney, and the Duty to Overthrow Tyranny. 12 Bridges 291 (nos. 3/4, Fall/Winter 2005). Alternate version in HTML.

The Religious Roots of the American Revolution and the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. 17 Journal on Firearms and Public Policy 167 (2005).

Does the Right to Bear Arms Impede or Promote Economic Development? 6 Engage 85 (2005, issue 1) (journal of The Federalist Society). Alternate version in HTML.

Microdisarmament: The Consequences for Public Safety and Human Rights. 73 UMKC Law Review 969 (2005). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen. Examines UN-sponsored programs to disarm people in Cambodia, Bougainville, Albania, Panama, Guatemala, and Mali. Alternate version in HTML.

The Licensing of Concealed Handguns for Lawful Protection: Support from Five State Supreme Courts. 68 Albany Law Review 305 (2005). Analyzes decisions in New Mexico, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Rhode Island. Cited in Wisconsin v. Fisher, 714 N.W.2d 495, 511 n. 6 (Wisc., May 17, 2006) (dissenting opinion of Justice N. Patrick Crooks).

The Torah and Self-Defense. 109 Penn State Law Review 17 (2004). Alternate version in HTML.

Firearms Possession by "Non-State Actors": the Question of Sovereignty. 8 Texas Review of Law and Politics 373 (2004). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

Global Deaths from Firearms: Searching for Plausible Estimates. 8 Texas Review of Law and Politics 114 (2003). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

The UN Small Arms Conference. 23 SAIS Review 319 (Johns Hopkins) (Winter/Spring 2003, Issue 1). PDF. In Italiano html. In Italiono PDF.

When Must the Government Disclose Gun Owners' Names and Addresses? Preview of U.S. Supreme Court case Department of the Treasury v. City of Chicago. American Bar Association Preview of Supreme Court Cases, March 2003, pp. 289-93. Alternate version in HTML.

Gun Ownership and Human Rights. Brown Journal of World Affairs (Winter/Spring 2003, vol. IX, no. 2). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen. Alternate version in HTML.

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).

Smart Guns/Foolish Legislators. 34 Connecticut Law Review 157 (2001). With Cynthia Leonardatos and Paul Blackman.

Lawyers, Guns, and Burglars. 43 Arizona Law Review 345 (2001). Symposium issue. PDF.

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 Self-Defense Cases: How the Supreme Court Confronted a Hanging Judge in the Nineteenth Century. 27 American Journal of Criminal Law 294 (2000). Cited in United States v. McElhiney, 275 F.3d 928, 935 n.2 (10th Cir. 2001).

The Evolving Police Power: Some Observations for a New Century. 27 Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly 511 (2000). With Glenn Harlan Reynolds. Analyzes recent state court decisions striking down anti-sodomy laws, and suggests that courts in the 21st century—like courts in the 19th century—may increasingly recognize that the police power is not infinite. Also available in Word format.

Firearms Tracing Data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms: An Occasionally Useful Law Enforcement Tool, but a Poor Research Tool. 11 Criminal Justice Policy Review 44 (Mar 2000). With Paul Blackman.

Treating Guns Like Consumer Products. 148 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 1701 (2000).

Self-Defense: The Equalizer. 15 Forum for Applied Research and Public Policy 92 (No. 4, Winter 2000). Survey of gun control polices and results in Japan, Britain, Canada, and Australia. With Linda Gorman. PDF version. Alternate version in HTML.

Guns, Gangs, and Preschools: Moving Beyond Conventional Solutions to Confront Juvenile Violence. 1 Barry Law Review 63 (2000).

The Supreme Court's Thirty-five Other Second Amendment Cases. 18 St. Louis University Public Law Review 99 (1999).

The Sounds of the Supremes: A Reply to Professor Yassky. 18 St. Louis University Public Law Review 203 (1999).

Comprehensive Bibliography of the Second Amendment in Law Reviews. 11 Journal on Firearms and Public Policy 1 (1999). Includes hypertext links to many articles.

All the Way Down the Slippery Slope: Gun Prohibition in England, and Some Lessons for America. 22 Hamline Law Review 399 (1999). With Joseph Olson. PDF.

The Brady Bill Comes Due: The Supreme Court Saves Federalism. 9 George Mason Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Law Journal 189 (1999).

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.

Clueless: The Misuse of BATF Firearms Tracing Data.1999 Michigan State University Detroit College of Law Review 171. In PDF.

The Second Amendment in the Nineteenth Century. 1998 BYU Law Review 1359. Cited in Peruta v. County of San Diego, --- F.3d ----, 2016 WL 3194315 (9th Cir. 2016); 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).

Taking Federalism Seriously: Lopez and the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban. 30 Connecticut Law Review 59 (1997). With Glenn Harlan Reynolds.

Can Soldiers be Peace Officers? The Waco Disaster and the Militarization of Law Enforcement. 30 Akron Law Review 619 (1997). With Paul Blackman. Reprinted in Italian in Carlo Stagnaro, editor, Waco: Una Strage di Stato Americano (Stampa Alternativa 2001).

The Unwarranted Warrant: The Waco Search Warrant and the Decline of the Fourth Amendment. 18 Hamline Journal of Public Law and Policy 1 (1996). With Paul Blackman.

Communitarians, Neorepublicans, and Guns: Assessing the Case for Firearms Prohibition. 56 Maryland Law Review 438 (1997). With Chris Little. Cited in Kasler v. Lockyer, 23 Cal.4th 472, 510, 97 Cal.Rptr.2d 334, 360 (Cal. 2000). Concurring opinion by Justice Janice Rogers Brown.

Preventing a Reign of Terror: Civil Liberties Implications of Terrorism Legislation. 21 Oklahoma City Law Review 247 (1996). PDF.

Guns, Germs, and Science: Public Health Approaches to Gun Control. 84 Journal of the Medical Association of Georgia 269 (June 1995).

The Ideology of Guns and Gun Control in the United States. 18 Quarterly Journal of Ideology 3 (1995).

Massaging the Medium: Reducing Media Violence without Infringing the First Amendment. 4 Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy 17 (1995).

It isn't about Duck Hunting: The British Origins of the Right to Arms (book review). 96 Michigan Law Review 1333 (1995). Cited in Oregon v. Hirsch, 338 Or. 622, 657, 114 P.3d 1104, 1123 (2005) (unanimous opinion by Justice Durham).

Book review of Aaron Zelman, et al., Lethal Laws, 15 New York Law School Journal of International and Comparative Law 355 (1995).

The Sullivan Principles: Protecting the Second Amendment from Civil Abuse. 19 Seton Hall Legislative Journal 737 (1995). With Richard Gardiner.

Shall Issue: The New Wave of Concealed Handgun Laws. 63 Tennessee Law Review 679 (1995). With Clayton Cramer. Cited in Pagel v. Franscell, 57 P.3d 1226, 1234 (Wyo. 2002) (Justice Golden, specially concurring); Lorenda Moody v. The ARC of Howard County, Inc., 2011 WL 2671385, *5 n.4, 94 Empl. Prac. Dec. P 44,221 (D.Md. July 7, 2011) (Judge Bredar).

A Tale of Three Cities: The Right to Bear Arms in State Courts. 68 Temple Law Review 1177 (1995). With Clayton Cramer and Scott Hattrup. Cited in State v. Mendoza, 82 Hawai'i 143, 146 n.4, 920 P.2d 357, 360 n.4 (Haw. 1996) (majority opinion by Justice Klein); State v. Schelin, 147 Wash.2d 562, 588, 5 P.3d 632, 645 (Wash. 2002) (Justice Sanders, dissenting).

Rational Basis Analysis of 'Assault Weapon' Prohibition. 20 Journal of Contemporary Law 381 (1994). Cited in Kasler v. Lungren, 72 Cal. Rptr. 2d 260, 265 (Cal. App. 1998) (majority opinion by Associate Justice Morrison).

The Allure of Foreign Gun Laws. 83 Journal of the Medical Association of Georgia 153 (Mar. 1994).

Burning Mad: The Controversy over Treatment of Hazardous Waste in Incinerators, Boilers, and Industrial Furnaces. 23 Environmental Law Reporter 10216 (Feb. 1993).

The Anti-Deficiency Act: A Deficient Excuse for Federal Violations of Environmental Laws. 23 Environmental Law Reporter 10481 (Aug. 1993).

Japanese Gun Control. 2 Asia-Pacific Law Review 26 (1993). Español.

Peril or Protection? The Risks and Benefits of Handgun Prohibition. 12 Saint Louis University Public Law Review 285 (1993). PDF.

Sorry, Wrong Number: Why Media Polls on Gun Control are so Often Unreliable. 9 Political Communication and Persuasion 69 (no. 2, April-June 1992). With Gary A. Mauser.

Canadian Gun Control: Should America Look North for a Solution to its Firearms Problem? 5 Temple Journal of International and Comparative Law 1 (1991).

Monographs and Conference Papers

Licensed Handgun Carry for Young Adults Serving in the Armed Forces. Independence Institute, Issue Paper no. 1-2016.

The Costs and Consequences of Gun Control. Cato Institute Policy Analysis no. 784 (Dec. 1, 2015).

Necessary Reforms Can Keep Interpol Working in the U.S. Interest. Heritage Foundation Backgrounder #2861. With Theodore R. Bromund. Dec. 11, 2013.

Mexico's Federal Laws on Firearms and Explosives. University of Denver Legal Studies Research Paper No. 10-12. April 2010.

Poisoned Milk and the Poisoning of Democracy: Some Cautions about China Trade and Taiwan Sovereignty. Presented at the symposium "Taiwan's New Approach: Opportunities and Challenges for President Ma Ying-jeou's Government." International House, University of Chicago, October 24, 2008.  

Taiwan's Presidential Elections: An Analysis of What Happened, and What May Happen Next. Independence Institute Issue Paper 3-2008. April 2008. Examining how KMT candidate Ma Ying-Jeou won the election in part because of his strong defense of Taiwan's sovereignty and his appeal to Taiwan's growing national consciousness. The Issue Paper also analyzes the two referenda on UN membership.

Media Errors in Coverage of Boulder High School: Falsehoods, Distortions, and Omissions by Bill O'Reilly and "Caplis & Silverman". Independence Institute Issue Paper. June 2007.

Human Rights Atrocities: The Consequences of United Nations Gun Confiscation in East Africa. With Paul Gallant and Joanne Eisen. How U.N.-backed gun confiscation programs in Kenya and Uganda have led to murder, torture, and arson, and have turned tens of thousands of pastoral tribespeople into starving refugees. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder no. 2006-F. June 2006. In PDF. In HTML.

Dark Sky Ordinances: Separating the Light from the Darkness. Independence Institute Issue Paper 4-2006. April 2006. With Michael Loatman.

H.R. 1528: A Threat to Gun Owners, Family, and Privacy. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder, no. 2005-C. July 2005. With Mike Krause. New Congressional bill to increase mandatory sentences would be a disaster for the Second Amendment and other civil liberties.

The New McCarthyism: Restricting Constitutional Rights Based on Mere Suspicion. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder, no. 2005-B. June 2005. Analysis of proposals to use the "no-fly list" or other suspicion-based lists as a basis for prohibiting the exercise of Second Amendment rights. Alternate version in HTML.

The Drug War on Human Rights and Civil Liberties. Occasional Paper # 8 from the Liberal Institute of the Friederich Naumann Foundation in Potsdam, Germany. English full-text in PDF. Alternate version in HTML.

Fifty-nine Deceits in Fahrenheit 911. Independence Institute. July 2004.

Ballistic Imaging: Not Ready for Prime Time. National Center for Policy Analysis. Policy Backgrounder 160. April 2003. With Sterling Burnett. Alternative version in PDF.

Limited Preemption of Firearms Laws: A Good Step for Civil Rights. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder no. 03-B. Mar. 2003.

Denver's New Welfare Hotel: Why the Convention Center Hotel is a Mistake. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 2-2003. Jan. 2003.

Hate Crime Laws: Dangerous and Divisive. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 1-2003. Jan. 2003. Alternate version in HTML.

Asset Forfeiture Reform is Overdue. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder no 2002-D. Apr. 2002. Discusses Colorado and Denver confiscation laws.

Should Gun Shows Be Outlawed? McCain Bill Does Much More than Impose Background Checks. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 1-2002. Jan. 2002. With Alan Korwin.

Access to the Internet: Regulation or Markets? Heartland Policy Study No. 92. Heartland Institute. Sept. 1999. Analyzes "Open Access" proposals to force cable television companies to let other companies use the the cable companies' Internet connections. PDF.

Firearms Deaths in Colorado. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder 2001-D. February 2001. With Diane Nicholl.

Strengthening Due Process and Accountability, by Limiting Public Contingent Fee Arrangements. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder 2000-N. April 2000.

The Truth About Gun Shows. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder. Jan. 21, 2000.

Abusive Lawsuits against the Second Amendment. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder no. 2000-C . Jan. 2000.

How Strict are U.S., Colorado, and Local Gun Control Laws? Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 12-1999. Aug. 1999. Details how pervasive and severe existing gun control laws already are. The paper examines the 20 weapons law violations perpetrated by the Columbine criminals.

Unfair and Unconstitutional: The New Federal Gun Control and Juvenile Crime Proposals. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 3-99. June 1999. With James Winchester.

Denver's Property Confiscation Ordinances: Good Targets for HB 1305. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder 1999-N. Feb. 1999.

Visiting Nurse Programs: A Good Idea but not with Tobacco Loot. Independence Institute Issue Backgrounder 1999-D. Feb. 1999.

Agenda for a Better Colorado: The ABC Guide for Colorado Candidates. Independence Institute Issue Paper 8-1998. Oct. 1998. With John Andrews.

Would Clarence Darrow Defend the Branch Davidians? Ethical Considerations for Second Amendment and other Bill of Rights Attorneys in Representing Members of Unpopular Groups. NRA Foundation Continuing Legal Education Program, Ethics Panel. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 5, 1998.

Privileged Polluters: The Case against Exempting Municipalities from Superfund. Competitive Enterprise Institute. March 1998.

Refining Colorado's Criminal Code. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 10-1997. Dec. 1997.

Unneeded Laws 1997. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 2-1997. Jan. 1997. Obsolete or harmful laws in the Colorado Revised Statutes. With Jerry Kopel.

Prison Blues: How America's Foolish Sentencing Policies Endanger Public Safety. Cato Institute, April 1994. Cited in United States v. Vargas, 885 F. Supp. 504, 505 n. 1 (S.D.N.Y. 1995) (Judge Vincent Broderick).

Squirt Gun Bans Won't Stop Violent Crime: Denver's "Mr. Wilson laws" are Empty Shells. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 25-1993. Nov. 1993.

Children and Guns: Sensible Solutions. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 11-93. Apr. 1993.

Extreme Drug Law Tramples Bill of Rights: Flaws Seen in Uniform Controlled Substances Act." Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 1-1992.January 1992.

Marijuana Jail Terms: Costly and Hasty. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 5-1991. April 1991.

Drug Testing: Shaky Science May Nullify Good Intentions. Independence Institute Issue Paper no. 4-90. April 1990.

Trust the People: The Case Against Gun Control. Cato Institute Policy Analysis no. 109. July 1988. Reprinted in 3 Journal on Firearms and Public Policy 77 (1990). German translation (Deutsche Übersetzung): Vertraue der Bevölkerung: Die Causa gegen Waffenverbote.

Chapters/Entries in Books

Restoring the Right to Keep and Bear Arms in Cato Handbook for Policymakers (8th ed. 2017). With Trevor Burrus and Robert A. Levy.

Asking whether American gun laws should be stricter misses the mark, in Gun Control in the United States A Reference Handbook (2d edition; Gregg Lee Carter editor) (ABC-Clio, forthcoming 2017).

Comparison of National Gun Laws, in Guns and Contemporary Society: The Past, Present, and Future of Firearms and Firearm Policy. (Praeger Publishers, ABC-CLIO, Glenn H. Utter editor, 2015).

Gun Politics in America: Historical and Modern Documents in Context. (2 vols., Harry L. Wilson ed.) (ABC-CLIO 2016).

Meaning of the Second Amendment: The Motives Behind the Second Amendment: An Individual Right. American Government. (ABC-CLIO, 2013).

Restoring the Right to Bear Arms, in Cato Handbook for Policymakers (2009, 7th ed.). With Robert A. Levy.

Gun Control and the Right to Arms after 9/11, in The Impact of 9/11 and the New Legal Landscape. (Editor, Matthew J. Morgan) (Palgrave MacMillan, 2009). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

Michael Moore is a Big Fat Stupid White Man, by David Hardy & Jason Clarke. The paperback edition contains a chapter by Kopel, an abbreviated examination of Michael Moore's deceits in "Fahrenheit 9/11."

Militarization on the Home Front, in Cato Handbook on Policy (2005).

A Foreign Policy Disaster, in The New Prohibition: Voices of Dissent Challenge the Drug War (Accurate Press, 2004). With Mike Krause. Alternate version in HTML.

Comment on Cook & Ludwig, "Guns and Burglary," in Evaluating Gun Policy: Effects on Crime and Violence (Brookings Institution, 2003) (Philip J. Cook & Jens Ludwig, editors).

Guns and Burglars, in Guns, Crime, and Punishment in America. (NYU Press, 2003) (Bernard Harcourt, editor).

Foreword to Gary Marbut, Gun Laws of Montana (2003).

Smash-up Policing: When Law Enforcement Goes Military. National Review, print edition, May 22, 2000. Reprinted in Busted: Stone Cowboys, Narco-Lords and Washington's War on Drugs (New York: Thunder's Mouth Press/Nation Books, 2002). Mike Bray, editor.

The Expanding Federal Police Power and Gun Control, in Cato Handbook for Congress—107th Congress (2001).

La libertà, l'esercito e la legge, in Waco: Una strage di stato Americana (Stampa Alternativa 2001).

Law Enforcement Militarization: The Drug War's Deadly Fruit, in After Prohibition: An Adult Approach to Drug Policies in the 21st Century (Cato Institute, 2000).

America's Only Realistic Option: Promoting Responsible Gun Ownership, in Guns in America: A Reader (N.Y.: New York University Press, 1999) (edited by Jan E. Dizard, Robert Merril Muth, and Stephen P. Andrews, Jr.).

The Brady Litigation: The Supreme Court Saves Federalism, in Commentaries on Law and Public Policy: 1997 Yearbook (Dumont Institute: 1999).

The Expanding Federal Police Power, in Cato Handbook for Congress—106th Congress (1999).

The Federal Government Should Set a Better Example, in Terrorism in the United States (N.Y.: H.W. Wilson Co., 1997). Part of the "Reference Shelf" series.

The Expanding Federal Police Power and Terrorism, in Cato Handbook for Congress—105th Congress (1997).

Two articles on concealed carry and one on foreign gun control in Marjolijn Bijlefeld, editor, The Gun Control Debate: A Documentary History (Greenwood Press, 1997).

Civil Liberties and Criminal Law, in The Cato Handbook for Congress—104th Congress (1995).

Government Practice, chapter in Full Disclosure: Do You Really Want to Be a Lawyer? (Peterson's Guides & the American Bar Association, 1989 and 1992).

Media Bias in Coverage of Gun Control: The Press Evaluates the Popular Culture, in The Gun Culture and Its Enemies (Bellevue: Merril Press, 1990) (William Tonso, editor).

Encyclopedias and Dictionaries

Entry on "Dhimmis" in Encyclopedia of Political Thought (Wiley-Blackwell, Facts on File, 2014).

Editorial Board and author of 45 entries for Guns in American Society: An Encyclopedia of History, Politics, Culture, and the Law (ABC/Clio: 2d ed. 2012). Named an "Editors Choice," as one of the best new reference books by Booklist, the magazine of the American Library Association. Selected entries frp,tje 2002 1st edition, written or edited by Kopel: American Medical Association. American Jewish Congress. Bartley-Fox. Defensive Gun Use. Gun Rights Policy Conference. HELP Network. Arthur Kellermann. Klanwatch Project (Southern Poverty Law Center). National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Native Americans and Gun Violence. Plastic Guns. Poverty and Gun Violence. Sonzinsky v. United States. Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI). Washington, D.C. James D. Wright.

Entry on "Pierce v. Society of Sisters" in The Twenties in America (Salem Press, 2012).

Entry on "Garcia, Jerry" in Latinos (Great Lives from History) (Salem Press, 2012).

Entries on "National Firearms Act of 1934" and "Pittman-Robertson Act of 1937) in The Thirties in America (Salem Press, 2011).

Entry on "Murphy, Audie" in The Forties in America (Salem Press, 2010).

Entries on "Columbine massacre", "Gun control", and "Ruby Ridge shoot-out" in The Nineties in America (Salem Press, 2009).

Entries on "Samuel Colt", "Richard Gatling" and "Hudson Maxim" in Inventors and Inventions (Great Lives from History) (Salem Press, 2009).

Entries on "Ballistic Fingerprinting", "Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms", "Gunshot Wounds" & "Silencers, gun" in Forensic Science (Salem Press, 2008).

Entries on "Hennard, George", "Huberty, James Oliver," and "Lepine, Marc," in Notorious Lives (Salem Press, 2007).

Entries on: "Branch Davidians, raid on," "Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms", "Right to Bear Arms", "Vigilantism," and "Firearms, Legal and Illegal" in Criminal Justice (Salem Press, 2005).

Entry on "Gun Control," in Dictionary of American History (N.Y.: Scribners, revised edition, 2003).

"Police Violence" in Encyclopedia of Violence in the United States (N.Y.: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1999).

Excerpts in Secondary School and College Books

"Treating Personal Transfers Like Retail Sales Would Violate Rights," in Gun Violence. Opposing Viewpoints (Greenhaven Pr., Gale/Cenage, Noel Merino 2015). 

"Guns, Mental Illness, and Newtown," in Guns and Crime. At Issue (Gale/Cenage Learning, Jonathan Vereecke editor, 2014).

"Self-Defense Is a Natural Right," in Self-Defense Laws. At Issue. (Gale/Cenage Learning, 2014)

"The Second Amendment Protects an Individual Right," in Gun Control. Opposing Viewpoints (Gale/Cenage Learning, 2012, Noel Merino ed.) (history of the collective right theory).

"Inadequate Law Enforcement Was a Death Sentence for Columbine Victims" and "Stronger Gun Laws Would Not Have Presented the Columbine School Shooting," in The Columbine School Shooting. Part of the Perspectives on Modern World History series.  (Greenhaven Press, part of Gale/Cenage, 2012).

"Virtue in Equivocation" in Inquiry Argument and Change: A Rhetoric with Readings, by Barbara Jo Krieger (Kendall/Hunt Pub. 2011).

"Whether Gun Laws Should be Strict Depends on the Type of Law."  Issues: Understanding Controversy and Society (ABC-Clio, 2011) (research database).

"Human Rights Atrocities: The Consequences of United Nations Gun Confiscation in East Africa" in Gun Control. Global Viewpoints (Greenhaven/Gale, 2010). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

"An Arms Trade Treaty Could Encourage Human Rights Violations" in The Arms Trade. Current Controversies series. (Greenhaven Press 2009). With Paul Gallant & Joanne D. Eisen.

"Anti-Gun Lobbyists Take the Supreme Court's Decision Out of Context" (analysis of Presser v. Illinois) in Gun Control. Issues on Trial (Greenhaven Press 2007).

"Florida's New Self-defense Law," in Gun Control. Opposing Viewpoints. (Greenhaven Press, Thomson Gale, 2007).

"Gun Bans and Genocide: The Disarming Facts," Genocide. Opposing Viewpoints (Thomson Gale, 2007).

Testimony on the Brady Bill. U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution, Aug. 2, 1988. Reprinted in History of Issues: Gun Control (Gale, 2006).

"Owning Guns is Rooted in America's Cultural Past," in Is Gun Ownership a Right? At Issue (Greenhaven Pr., 2005).

"Facial Recognition Technology Threatens Individual Privacy," in Homeland Security. At Issue (Greenhaven Pr., 2004).

"Strong Gun Control Laws Will Not Reduce Crime," in Guns and Crime. At Issue (Greenhaven Pr., 2004).

"Welfare Causes an Increase in Out-of-Wedlock Births," in Welfare. Opposing Viewpoints (Greenhaven, 2003). With Michael Tanner.

"Guns have been Wrongly Blamed for School Shootings," in School Shootings. At Issue (Greenhaven Press, 2002). With Ari Armstrong.

"Benefits of Handguns," in Jerry Cederblom & David W. Paulson, Critical Reasoning (Wadsworth, 2001).

"Guns in Right Hands Make Society Safer," in Gun Control and Crime. At Issue (Greenhaven Pr., 1999).

"Why Good People Own Guns: Better Safe than Sorry," in John Ramage and John Bean, eds., Writing Arguments (Allyn & Bacon, 4th ed. 1997).

"Children are not at Risk from Handgun Violence" & "Legalizing Concealed Weapons Makes Society Safer", in Gun Control. Opposing Viewpoints (Greenhaven Pr., 1997).

"Militias, White Supremacy and Violence," in The Militia Movement and Hate Groups in America. Ideas in Conflict (GEM Publications, 1996)

"Privately Owned Guns Increase Security," in Crime and Criminals. Opposing Viewpoints (Greenhaven Pr., 1995).

"Japanese Gun Laws Are Oppressive" in Gun Control. Current Controversies (Greenhaven Press, 1992).

"Guns are Necessary for Self-Defense", in Crime and Criminals. Opposing Viewpoints (Greenhaven Pr., 1989).

Note: The chapter titles in the above series are written by the editors, and almost never are the original title of the reprinted article. In some cases, the editor-written title may not accurately express the precise meaning of the chapter.

Honors and Awards

Who's Who Lifetime Achievement. Who's Who in the World; Who's Who in America; Who's Who in the West; Who's Who in Emerging Leaders in America; Who's Who in American Law.

Defender of the Constitution, 2017. Second Amendment Foundation.

Global Leadership Award, 2014, Second Amendment Foundation.

Defender of Liberty, 2012, Second Amendment Foundation.

Scholar of the Year, 2009, Second Amendment Foundation.

Journalist of the Year, 2006, 2002, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

Gun Rights Defender of the Year, 1999, Citizen's Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

Thomas S. Szasz Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Cause of Civil Liberties, 1997, conferred by the Center for Independent Thought, for the book No More Wacos.

Bill of Rights Award, 1997, Second Amendment Foundation.

James Madison Award, 1995 and 1989, Second Amendment Foundation.

Book of the Year, 1992, American Society of Criminology, Division of International Criminology, for The Samurai, the Mountie, and the Cowboy.