Supreme Court Ruling on Heller & the 1986 Prohibition

[Anthony]

Hello Everyone,

After reading Justice Scalia's opinion earlier today I was left wondering how the ruling would effect the 1986 prohibition of the manufacture of new full auto weaponry for civilian consumption. In his opinion, Justice Scalia discusses the types of weapons covered by the second amendment and goes so far as to use the M-16 as an example. Now I am not a lawyer, but I was quite moved by it. Shortly thereafter I read the below article on the Fox News Channel's website pointing out that:

"The issue caused a split within the Bush administration. Vice President Dick Cheney supported the appeals court ruling, but others in the administration feared it could lead to the undoing of other gun regulations, including a federal law restricting sales of machine guns."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,372041,00.html

Thoughts?

Any legal minds on the board?

 

[FiveBillionAcres]

Well banning NEW machine guns is useless and doesn't make them all that hard to get, the world is already flooded with pre 86 automatics. However I wouldn't expect to see the ban on new guns lifted any time soon, not without another landmark legal trial. The fact of the matter is the government doesn't want it to happen and pushing for it brands you a madman so the general public won't support it like they did Heller over simple handguns. Furthermore lower courts have a tendency of disregarding supreme court decisions by insisting they don't apply one way or another to other laws.

however I'd be darn happy if they lifted the pre 86 ban

 

[Vegaslaith]

Let me first say, WOOOOO! We won!!


Anyway, as much as I'd like to see the 86 ban lifted, pushing the issue might backfire on us. Just as anti's lost some momentum with their handgun ban, MGs may have a similar effect. The fact is, most people don't support full auto ownership.IMO, they were only legal for as long as they were because nobody knew otherwise. However rest assured, this case will directly or indirectly lead to a challange to Hughes. That much we can count on. The only question is: What will the make up of SCOTUS look like when that happens. 5/4 is victory, but nothing to get too exited over. That's why this election is so pivotal.

 

[Robert Hairless]

Anyway, as much as I'd like to see the 86 ban lifted, pushing the issue might backfire on us.

Might backfire? The 1986 ban will be lifted quite a while after hell freezes over, after pigs fly, after an elephant wins So You Think You Can Dance, after Michael Bloomberg becomes tolerant of other people, after Richard M. Daley learns to speak English, after Barack Obama gets his first real job, and after Rep. Carolyn McCarthy has a faint glimmer of intelligence in her eyes--which is to say "never."

 

[Jeff White]

Already under discussion in this thread: http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=373255