Today Mayor Adrian Fenty formally announced he’s appealing the U.S. Appellate Court’s decision to overturn the city’s restrictive handgun laws. The statutes, on the books for over 30 years, severely limit firearms ownership, a policy the court said violates the Second Amendment. Fenty’s appeal comes as no surprise. Though we found mixed reactions in early March, most D.C. officials support the ban.
The mayor’s case will first be reheard in the Court of Appeals, but it has the possibility of landing in the Supreme Court’s hands. There it’s likely the conservative judges will support the lower court’s ruling.
House Republicans are also itching to end the District’s gun ban. As we all know, they unexpectedly attached their own legislation to overturn the ban onto the District Voting Rights Bill. Democrats then postponed voting on the bill, with no concrete word of when it will reach the floor again (though mid-April is likely). What does all of this really mean? It could take a very long time for the powers that be to determine the future of firearms in the District.
Photo by Flickr user FrogMiller
