Ninth Circuit Recognizes Right to Bear Arms Outside the Home

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that the Second Amendment endows the right to carry a gun outside the home. The opinion comes days before the Supreme Court is expected to decidewhether to review two other cases that ask the question of whether the right to bear arms extends beyond the home.

The California-based appeals court, in a 2-1 ruling authored by Judge Diarmuid OScannlain, delved into American history, from the Founding Era forward, and found support for the notion that bearing arms means carrying a gun in public:

So concludes our analysis of text and history: the carrying of an operablehandgun outside the home for the lawful purpose of self-defense, though subject totraditional restrictions, constitutes bear[ing] Arms within the meaning of the Second Amendment.

The case comes from San Diego County, which, according to state law, requires residents to show good cause for carrying a concealed handgun. Personal safety alone does not qualify as good cause. The question for the court was whether the requirement infringes on the Second Amendments right to bear arms.

From the Ninth Circuit:

The question is notwhether the California scheme (in light of San Diego Countys policy) allows somepeople to bear arms outside the home in some places at some times; instead, thequestion is whether it allows the typical responsible, law-abiding citizen to beararms in public for the lawful purpose of self-defense. The answer to the latterquestion is a resounding no.

To be clear, we are not holding that the Second Amendment requires thestates to permit concealed carry. But the Second Amendment does require that thestates permit some form of carry for self-defense outside the home.

The courts ruling aligns with one by the Chicago-based Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, but conflicts with the Second, Third and Fourth Circuits.

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Ninth Circuit Recognizes Right to Bear Arms Outside the Home