A New State Ice Age for Gun Policy
![handle is hein.journals/harlpolrv10 and id is 337 raw text is:
A New State Ice Age for Gun Policy
Allen Rostront
INTRODUCTION
Over eighty years ago in his dissent in New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann,
Justice Louis Brandeis famously observed that [i]t is one of the happy
incidents of the federal system that a single courageous [sitate may, if its
citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic
experiments without risk to the rest of the country.1 An era of experimenta-
tion with different approaches to regulating firearms is underway in the
states, and the outcome of the experiments may ultimately determine the
direction of national policymaking.
Gun control remains one of America's most bitterly controversial is-
sues. A series of high profile shootings in recent years has made headlines
and intensified concerns about guns and the laws governing them.2 The con-
cerns run in both directions, with many Americans calling for greater restric-
tions on firearms and many others adamantly opposed to further regulations.
The debate seems to change few minds and instead each side of the issue
seems to only become more entrenched in its views.3
Shortly after Barack Obama became President in 2009, I wrote an arti-
cle for the Harvard Law & Policy Review in which I offered advice about
how the Obama administration might approach the gun issue.4 I encouraged
President Obama to speak candidly about the issue, to acknowledge its com-
plexity, and to lead the nation toward having a reasoned and constructive
dialogue about guns.5 Beyond that, I suggested that the Obama administra-
tion should strive to come up with legislative or regulatory proposals that
would simultaneously promote gun rights and gun control.6 For example, the
article suggested that the administration could work to enhance enforcement
of existing gun laws, a step that should be supported by those who favor
tighter gun restrictions as well as those skeptical of gun control's effective-
tAssociate Dean for Students and the William R. Jacques Constitutional Law Scholar and
Professor of Law, University of Missouri Kansas City School of Law. B.A. 1991, University
of Virginia; J.D. 1994, Yale Law School. Before becoming a law school teacher, Professor
Rostron worked as a senior staff attorney for the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. The
views expressed in this article are strictly his own and do not represent the positions of any
other person or entity.
'New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann, 285 U.S. 262, 311 (1932) (Brandeis, J., dissenting).
2 See infra Part I.
3 Scholars have explored why this is to be expected. See Dan M. Kahan & Donald
Braman, More Statistics, Less Persuasion: A Cultural Theory of Gun-Risk Perceptions, 151 U.
PA. L. REV. 1291, 1311 18 (2003) (contending that arguments based on empirical assessments
of policies' effects have little influence on people's views about those policies).
4 See generally Allen Rostron, Cease Fire: A Win- Win Strategy on Gun Policy for the
Obama Administration, 3 HARV. L. & POL'Y REV. 347 (2009).
5 Id. at 356 58.
6 Id. at 358-60.](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/harlpolrv10&div=19&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
What Is HeinOnline?
Contact us for annual subscription options:
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most
A New State Ice Age for Gun Policy
Contact us for annual subscription options:
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most