This seminar will explore a unique constitutional provision. Although the Second Amendment is hotly debated, the United States Supreme Court has only considered Second Amendment claims in a handful of cases. After 70 years, a new decision was rendered in D.C. v. Heller (2008). The seminar will explore the history of the Second Amendment beginning with its English antecedents and the constitutional debates over the militia and the armed population. Seminar members will explore the extensive law review and historical literature related to the Second Amendment; cases from state Supreme Courts ruling on analogous provisions in state constitutions, legislative determinations concerning the Second Amendment, the legislative history of the Fourteenth Amendment as it relates to the Second Amendment and the five US Supreme Court decisions that have pronounced on the Second Amendment. Contemporary issues implicating the Second Amendment will also be explored. Active class participation is expected and students are expected to do a substantial paper and discuss their research in class. Grading: Letter graded Credits: Variable Offered: Spring Categories: Long Paper Subject Areas: Constitutional Law and Civil Rights
