As politicians from across the spectrum begin to admit that maybe additional gun control restrictions are merited in the wake of the Newtown massacre, D.C. faces the prospect of having to allow residents to carry concealed weapons.

As the AP reports, last week a federal appeals court struck down Illinois’ statewide ban on the carrying of concealed weapons, likely setting the stage for a Supreme Court ruling on whether the Second Amendment extends to carrying a gun outside:

A provocative ruling by a panel of federal appeals court judges in Chicago struck down the only statewide ban on carrying concealed weapons, in Illinois. The ruling is somewhat at odds with those of other federal courts that have largely upheld state and local gun laws, including restrictions on concealed weapons, since the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling declaring that people have a right to have a gun for self-defense.

Much as the 2008 Heller case forced D.C. to allow residents to purchase and register handguns for use in the home, a pro-concealed carry Supreme Court decision would impact D.C., the last remaining jurisdiction that completely bans concealed weapons.

At a press conference today, D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson defended the city’s ongoing concealed weapon ban, saying that the city’s special status merits additional flexibility in the regulation of guns. “I think the District is easily distinguishable because it’s the nation’s capital,” he said. “We have every top official, every cabinet officials, every member of Congress, the diplomatic corps,” he added, echoing arguments against concealed carry made by D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier.

Washington Times scribe and D.C. resident Emily Miller, who earlier this year got herself a handgun, pushed Mendelson on the concealed carry ban, saying that residents would be able to defend themselves better against a rising tide of robberies if they were packing heat. (She recently wrote that the Connecticut massacre could have been mitigated if teachers could carry guns.) Mendelson disagreed, saying that the evidence of whether concealed weapons increase or decrease public safety is mixed. (The court that rules on Illinois’ ban said the same.)

More broadly, Mendelson defended the city’s post-Heller gun laws, and said that he didn’t expect any changes in the wake of the Newtown shooting. Earlier this year D.C. simplified the handgun registration process, scraping a ballistics test, vision test and training course. (The course was replaced by a video.) Tomorrow the council will vote on a bill that would make it an administrative offense for non-residents with legally purchased guns to be stopped in D.C. with them.

Still, there are no gun stores in D.C., guns aren’t allowed out of the home and the registration of handguns has remained low in recent years. According to data provided by MPD late last week, 1,889 handguns have been registered in D.C. since the Heller decision, bringing the total number of handguns in the city to just under 56,000. (The number includes handguns grandfathered into the 1973 ban, plus guns registered by security companies and off-duty police officers.) There are also some 12,000 registered rifles and close to 16,000 shotguns.

D.C. does already do one thing that has been mentioned as part of the move towards broader gun control: ban high-capacity magazines. When Miller got herself a Sig Sauer, she had to find one with a 10-bullet magazine, instead of the standard 13-bullet alternative.