Main Content

Constitutional Law

Incorporation and the Second Amendment

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." 

The most recent Bill of Rights protection to be fully incorporated is the Second Amendment. While gun control and regulation have been a controversial issue for over a century, many are surprised by the infrequent attention it has received from the United States Supreme Court. In fact, prior to the Heller (2008) decision, the last major Second Amendment ruling came in 1939. That is nearly a 70-year gap between landmark cases.