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http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-guns_wed1sep05,1,2446780.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
D.C. gun case may hit Chicago
City's law is next target if foes win in Supreme Court
September 5, 2007
WASHINGTON - Those who would do away with Washington's near-total ban on
handguns will tell you point-blank their next target: Chicago.
Gun-rights advocates scored a stunning success earlier this year when a
three-judge panel of a federal appeals court in Washington swept aside the
District of Columbia's ban on owning handguns, which had been in place since
1976.
On Tuesday, the district government appealed the decision to the Supreme
Court. If the court takes the case, as many observers believe it will, it
could place Chicago's handgun ban, as well as similar laws nationwide, in
jeopardy.
"There is reason to be concerned at this point," said Thomas Mannard,
executive director of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence.
"Chicago would be the logical follow-up," said Robert Levy, a libertarian
activist who filed the case against the D.C. ban. Levy, too, wants the
Supreme Court to take the case, making this a rare instance when both sides
in a dispute hope an appeal goes forward.
In a 2-1 decision in March, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals here said
the district's ban violated the Constitution's 2nd Amendment. It was the
most affirmative and sweeping embrace of the right to bear arms yet by a
federal appellate court.
'We do not need more guns'
That left the D.C. government in a bind. It faced a choice of asking the
Supreme Court to take the case and risk triggering a monumental ruling from
its conservative majority -- one that could wipe out gun bans across the
nation -- or accepting the appeals court decision and reworking its
ordinance. It decided to go for broke.
At a news conference Tuesday on the steps of the district's police
headquarters, Mayor Adrian Fenty said the city had no choice.
"In the end, the bottom line is that we do not need more guns in this city,"
said Fenty, flanked by more than a dozen police officers. "The only possible
outcome with more handguns is more violence."
As an example of the urgency of the situation, district officials cited the
death Sunday of a teenager who was shot by a 15-year-old in a struggle over
a handgun. Five people were killed in the district in close to a 24-hour
period over the weekend. In Chicago, the homicide rate is down this year by
almost 8 percent compared to a year ago, according to the Chicago Police
Department, which credits, among others things, an active effort to keep
handguns off the streets.
"The handgun ban in Chicago has made the city safer," said Tom Vanden Berk,
executive director of UCAN, a Chicago social welfare agency. Vanden Berk's
son was killed in crossfire in 1992.
Bans ineffective, critics say
But critics say that while law-abiding residents cannot keep handguns for
self-defense, the ban does nothing to prevent the flow of illegal guns into
Chicago from surrounding areas where buying a gun is easier. As an example,
they cite the city resorting to such tactics as the recent gun buyback,
which netted almost 6,000 handguns and assault weapons in exchange for
amnesty and $100 debit cards.
The first sweeping gun ban in the nation was passed by Morton Grove, Ill.,
in 1981. After it was upheld by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the
Supreme Court declined to hear the case. That gave such cities as Chicago
reason to believe that their gun bans were bulletproof. But a Supreme Court
ruling now would trump the 7th Circuit decision.
If the high court were to endorse a broad view of the 2nd Amendment in the
D.C. case, it would be a short step for Levy and other gun-rights activists
to argue that the amendment also applies to such municipal ordinances as the
Chicago ban.
The district's decision to appeal has left gun-control advocates
angst-ridden. They worry that the district's case isn't the best positioned
for Supreme Court review and fear a precedent that could have a cascade
effect across the nation.
"There are obvious risks to taking this particular case before this
particular court," said Dennis Henigan, legal director of the Brady Center
to Prevent Gun Violence.
The Supreme Court has not directly ruled on the scope of the 2nd Amendment
since 1939, and regardless, Henigan said, the current court is "comfortable
disregarding very old precedents." Added Kristen Rand, legislative director
of the Violence Policy Center in Washington: "I think you can rest assured
that virtually every gun law in the country would be at risk."
D.C.'s attorney general, Linda Singer, said the district could not worry
about the effect a negative ruling would have on other cities. "Our
responsibility is to the District of Columbia," Singer said.
- - -
Chicago gun ban similar to Washington's
The Chicago handgun ban is considered a close cousin of the District of
Columbia law, which prohibits the possession of handguns in the home but
permits ownership of rifles and shotguns. The Chicago ordinance, enacted in
1983, bars the ownership of handguns and assault weapons and mandates that
guns owned before the ban must be reregistered every two years.
D.C. gun case may hit Chicago
City's law is next target if foes win in Supreme Court
September 5, 2007
WASHINGTON - Those who would do away with Washington's near-total ban on
handguns will tell you point-blank their next target: Chicago.
Gun-rights advocates scored a stunning success earlier this year when a
three-judge panel of a federal appeals court in Washington swept aside the
District of Columbia's ban on owning handguns, which had been in place since
1976.
On Tuesday, the district government appealed the decision to the Supreme
Court. If the court takes the case, as many observers believe it will, it
could place Chicago's handgun ban, as well as similar laws nationwide, in
jeopardy.
"There is reason to be concerned at this point," said Thomas Mannard,
executive director of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence.
"Chicago would be the logical follow-up," said Robert Levy, a libertarian
activist who filed the case against the D.C. ban. Levy, too, wants the
Supreme Court to take the case, making this a rare instance when both sides
in a dispute hope an appeal goes forward.
In a 2-1 decision in March, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals here said
the district's ban violated the Constitution's 2nd Amendment. It was the
most affirmative and sweeping embrace of the right to bear arms yet by a
federal appellate court.
'We do not need more guns'
That left the D.C. government in a bind. It faced a choice of asking the
Supreme Court to take the case and risk triggering a monumental ruling from
its conservative majority -- one that could wipe out gun bans across the
nation -- or accepting the appeals court decision and reworking its
ordinance. It decided to go for broke.
At a news conference Tuesday on the steps of the district's police
headquarters, Mayor Adrian Fenty said the city had no choice.
"In the end, the bottom line is that we do not need more guns in this city,"
said Fenty, flanked by more than a dozen police officers. "The only possible
outcome with more handguns is more violence."
As an example of the urgency of the situation, district officials cited the
death Sunday of a teenager who was shot by a 15-year-old in a struggle over
a handgun. Five people were killed in the district in close to a 24-hour
period over the weekend. In Chicago, the homicide rate is down this year by
almost 8 percent compared to a year ago, according to the Chicago Police
Department, which credits, among others things, an active effort to keep
handguns off the streets.
"The handgun ban in Chicago has made the city safer," said Tom Vanden Berk,
executive director of UCAN, a Chicago social welfare agency. Vanden Berk's
son was killed in crossfire in 1992.
Bans ineffective, critics say
But critics say that while law-abiding residents cannot keep handguns for
self-defense, the ban does nothing to prevent the flow of illegal guns into
Chicago from surrounding areas where buying a gun is easier. As an example,
they cite the city resorting to such tactics as the recent gun buyback,
which netted almost 6,000 handguns and assault weapons in exchange for
amnesty and $100 debit cards.
The first sweeping gun ban in the nation was passed by Morton Grove, Ill.,
in 1981. After it was upheld by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the
Supreme Court declined to hear the case. That gave such cities as Chicago
reason to believe that their gun bans were bulletproof. But a Supreme Court
ruling now would trump the 7th Circuit decision.
If the high court were to endorse a broad view of the 2nd Amendment in the
D.C. case, it would be a short step for Levy and other gun-rights activists
to argue that the amendment also applies to such municipal ordinances as the
Chicago ban.
The district's decision to appeal has left gun-control advocates
angst-ridden. They worry that the district's case isn't the best positioned
for Supreme Court review and fear a precedent that could have a cascade
effect across the nation.
"There are obvious risks to taking this particular case before this
particular court," said Dennis Henigan, legal director of the Brady Center
to Prevent Gun Violence.
The Supreme Court has not directly ruled on the scope of the 2nd Amendment
since 1939, and regardless, Henigan said, the current court is "comfortable
disregarding very old precedents." Added Kristen Rand, legislative director
of the Violence Policy Center in Washington: "I think you can rest assured
that virtually every gun law in the country would be at risk."
D.C.'s attorney general, Linda Singer, said the district could not worry
about the effect a negative ruling would have on other cities. "Our
responsibility is to the District of Columbia," Singer said.
- - -
Chicago gun ban similar to Washington's
The Chicago handgun ban is considered a close cousin of the District of
Columbia law, which prohibits the possession of handguns in the home but
permits ownership of rifles and shotguns. The Chicago ordinance, enacted in
1983, bars the ownership of handguns and assault weapons and mandates that
guns owned before the ban must be reregistered every two years.