Several constitutional scholars have noted in the Supreme Court’s decision yesterday that the Court has made a pretzel of its arguments upholding its terrible decision in Bruen and yet realizing that domestic violence victims would be coming with the pitchforks if it upheld Rahimi’s right to have a gun in light of his history of gun violence.
The Court upheld the federal law if the gun owner poses a “credible threat to the physical safety” of certain people but did not address the broader issue of restraining orders. It limits the decision to the facts in Rahimi’s case, not to the broader issues that might arise for other domestic violence victims. And look at the limiting language: “temporarily disarmed.” Temporarily disarmed? You’ve got to be kidding.
The blind majority in the bump stock case doesn’t seem to think there’s a credible threat to community safety. Hiding behind the question of regulatory overreach, their myopia will result in some terrible event to be sure. Every member and candidate for Congress should be asked exactly what they would do to address gun violence.
Prayer for the Day
Some respite, O God, although limited, we have,
But our leaders just dither along, evading hard questions;
Looking to you, O God, we ask for leaders with courage,
Willing to take on the gun lobby, interested only in profits.
Where, O Lord, are the men and women of conscience,
Who have the strength to stand up against gun violence?
In the name of the One who calls us to peace,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
When an individual has been found by a court to pose a credible threat to the physical safety of another, that individual may be temporarily disarmed consistent with the Second Amendment.
Chief Justice Roberts in U.S. v. Rahimi, 602 U.S. ___ (2024)
Rather than asking whether a present-day gun regulation has a precise historical analogue, courts applying Bruen should ‘conside(r) whether the challenged regulation is consistent with the principles that underpin our regulatory tradition.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, concurring opinion in U.S. v. Rahimi, supra
O Lord my God, in you I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,
Or like a lion they will tear me apart, they will drag me away with no one to rescue.
Psalm 7: 1-2