McDonald v. City of Chicago

McDonald v. City of Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010), is a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court.

Chicago’s handgun ban effectively prohibited individuals from possessing handguns within city limits. After District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) recognized an individual Second Amendment right in federal enclaves, Otis McDonald and others challenged the Chicago ban as violating the Second Amendment as applied to the states.

Significance

Justice Alito’s 5-4 opinion held that the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense is fully applicable to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. The decision incorporated the Second Amendment against state and local governments, extending Heller’s protections nationwide. The Court used the ‘selective incorporation’ approach through the Due Process Clause rather than the Privileges or Immunities Clause, which the petitioners had urged.

Category

US Federal Case Law