ST. PAUL, Minn. — The US Supreme Court in a decision Friday upheld a federal law banning people who are victims of domestic violence from owning firearms, ruling that the provision does not violate the Second Amendment.
In the 8-1 decision, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the court that “since their inception, our nation’s firearms laws have contained provisions that prevent persons who physically harm others from misusing firearms”
“Applied to the facts of this case, [the law] fits perfectly within this tradition,” he continued.
Amirthini Keefe, executive director of the Domestic Abuse Project in Minneapolis, praised the decision as a victory for the victims and their families. In domestic violence situations, she says a person’s risk of death increases if he or she tries to end a relationship, and increases fivefold if a gun is available.
She noted that of the 39 people killed by their partners in the state last year, 23 died from gunshots — that’s nearly 60% of the total number of victims, according to data she cited from Violence Free Minnesota.
“That’s a pretty high number. And higher than it’s been in a long time,” Keefe told WCCO. “And so having these laws has major implications for the safety of families and the community.”
Roberts made clear that a person can only be disarmed if he is found by a court to “pose a credible threat to the physical safety of another.”
Meanwhile, Justice Clarence Thomas, in his lone dissent, argued that the court had not proven that this statute complies with the Second Amendment and warned that the decision could have broader implications.
“To ensure that the government can regulate part of society, today’s decision puts the rights of many more people at risk,” he wrote.
The ruling reverses a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals and comes two years after a landmark decision that struck down other gun restrictions in a New York case. and expanded gun rights.
The decision published on Friday is a ruling in the case of US vs. Rahimiand it marked the first test of a new legal framework established by that 2022 ruling, requiring the government to demonstrate that a law subject to constitutional challenge fits into the nation’s “history and tradition of area of firearms regulation’. according to CBS News.
The Battered Women’s Justice Project, based in St. Paul, also applauded the ruling and vowed to redouble their efforts to protect the victims.
“We are extremely relieved and encouraged by this decision,” the organization’s CEO, Amy Sánchez, said in a statement. “Protection orders are an essential tool in protecting survivors of domestic violence. Maintaining restrictions on access to firearms for abusers will ensure that these protective measures remain effective and that survivors are not placed at greater risk.”
Caroline Cummings
