Margeret Groban both an attorney and professor spoke to our club on the Second Amendment, starting by reading the full passage: “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.”

 

According to Margeret, the prevailing view through 2008 was that the Second Amendment only applied to a well-regulated militia. The collective theory was that there is collective right to bear arms by militia, and not an individual right for all to possess firearms.  

 

Background checks were implemented by the FBI when Jim Brady and President Reagan were shot. Technically the shooter was prohibited from owning a gun, but there was no background check system in place. In 1998, the FBI started the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Since then they’ve completed over 550 million background checks for firearm dealer sales, not counting gun swaps or private sales.

 

Last year Maine legislature passed a process so every advertised purchase must go through a background check and a 72-hour waiting period. In Maine, most firearm deaths are from suicide rather than homicide, so suicide prevention is prioritized. The thought is that if someone has to wait three days for a firearm, that that may reduce the possibility of suicide.

 

In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled on D.C. versus Hellor. At the time, D.C. prohibited possession of handguns in the home. Mr. Heller, a police officer, argued that the 2nd Amendment gave an individual a right to keep and bear arms.  He noted the Second Amendment has two clauses, 1) about a well-regulated militia, and 2), for the right of the people to bear arms to not be infringed. The Court ruled that the 2nd Amendment is an individual right allowing an individual to keep and bear arms. That was a shift in 2nd Amendment law, and the justices included a paragraph that said the right is not unlimited.The court found a legitimate government interest in passing a restrictive law, such as mental illness, past offenses, and the like.

 

In 2022, another case, NY State Pistol and Rifle Association vs. Boone. In this case, two men from applied for unrestricted gun carrying licenses. At the time, NY issued those licenses only if proper cause existed. You couldn't just say, I'm scared to go out at night, I need a permit to carry. The Supreme Court ruled  that the 2nd Amendment does not just exist to keep you safe in your home, but also outside the home for self-defense. They noted self-defense is an integral part of the 2nd Amendment and government interests are no longer relevant. The case review went back to 1791, prompting Margaret to say that attorneys now need to become historians.

 

In 2024, there was a Supreme Court case with an 8-to-1 majority called U.S. vs Rahimi. Rahimi was a serial domestic abuser and a community danger. There was an understanding that Rahimi was the type of person that should not have a firearm. The Supreme raised the level of generality noting that they did not need a specific crime to rule on: there is a historical concept of disarming dangerous people.

 

According to Margeret, currently there are categories of people who legally may not own guns and may be considered dangerous including:

 

Margeret discussed the difference between red and yellow flag laws. Noting that the FBI has studied every mass shooter and  determined that mental illness is not a good predictor of violence. Just because someone is suffering from a mental illness does not make them violent, and there may be many people who are very violent who don't have a diagnosable mental illness. 

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