The Supreme Court is poised to hear a major guns case that has the potential to significantly expand Second Amendment rights, Vox reported on Monday.
Ironically, the case started over a relatively minor dispute. New York City even changed its laws to accommodate the gun owners who are the plaintiffs, who objected to the city's prohibition on carrying a licensed, locked, and unloaded handgun outside municipal limits.
But even with the change in the law, the plaintiffs have refused to dismiss the case as moot.
"Because the changes were so transparently made to block the Supreme Court from reviewing the rules, the challengers emphasize, it is especially important that the justices weigh in to keep the city from reinstating similar rules," according to Amy Howe in SCOTUSblog.
In addition, the plaintiffs saw an opportunity with a more conservative court in place than when the case was first brought in 2013 to get a much more expansive decision in favor of the rights of gun owners, Vox pointed out.
Lawyer Paul Clement, who represents the plaintiffs, has depicted the case as a grand fight over "draconian restrictions on the possession and transport of handguns."
The 2018 addition of Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the court could swing the decision toward the plaintiffs. Kavanaugh, who was nominated by President Donald Trump, replaced the more moderate Justice Anthony Kennedy after the latter retired.
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