The Gun-Shy Commonwealth: Self-Defense and Concealed Carry in Post-Heller Massachusetts
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THE GUN-SHY COMMONWEALTH: SELF-
DEFENSE AND CONCEALED CARRY IN POST-
HELLER MASSACHUSETTS
I. INTRODUCTION
One in three Americans owns a gun, and in 2011 the percentage of
adults with a gun in their home or on their property was the highest since
1993.1 This increase in gun ownership came at the same time as all-time
low support for a ban on handguns.2 Preceding the public support against
handgun bans, the Supreme Court ruled in District of Columbia v. Heller
that a ban on handgun ownership by law-abiding residents violated the
Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. This landmark
decision established that the Second Amendment guarantees the right of
individual citizens to own guns independent of service in the militia.5
Despite this seemingly definitive answer on the meaning of the Second
Amendment, a looming question remains: does the right to bear arms
extend outside of the home, encompassing the right of law-abiding citizens
to carry concealed weapons for self-defense?6
1 See Lydia Saad, SelfReported Gun Ownership in US. Is Highest Since 1993, GALLUP
(Oct. 26, 2011), http://www.gallup.com/poll/150353/Self-Reported-Gun-Ownership-Highest-
1993.aspx (explaining 47% reported gun ownership in October 2011). Contrasting this with a
decrease in reported gun ownership in the early 1990s, the data suggests that attitudes [towards
firearms] may again be changing. Id.
2 See Jeffrey M. Jones, Record-Low 26% in US. Favor Handgun Ban, GALLUP (Oct. 26,
2011), http:www.gallup.com/poll/150341/Record-Low-Favor-Handgun-Ban.aspx (Americans
have shifted to a more pro-gun view on gun laws, particularly in recent years, with record-low
support for a ban on handguns, an assault rifle ban, and stricter gun laws in general.). In
addition to low support for a handgun ban, for the first time the Gallup poll found greater
opposition than support for a ban on semiautomatic weapons or assault rifles. Id. The shift in
attitudes towards gun control does not correlate with changed perceptions of crime, fear of crime,
or reports of victimization. Id. Instead, the author suggests the trends are a reflection of the
public's acceptance of guns. Id.
3 554 U.S. 570 (2008).
4 See id. at 635 (holding ban on handgun possession in home violates Second Amendment);
see also Jeffrey M. Jones, Public Believes Americans Have Right to Own Guns, GALLUP (Mar.
27, 2008), http://www.gallup.com/poll/105721/Public-Believes-Americans-Right-Own-
Guns.aspx (explaining 73% of Americans believe Second Amendment guarantees right to own
guns). Most Americans at the time Heller was decided believed the Second Amendment
conferred a right to own guns. Id.
5 See Heller, 554 U.S. at 595 (There seems to us no doubt, on the basis of both text and
history, that the Second Amendment conferred an individual right to keep and bear anms.).
6 See Heller, 554 U.S. at 595 (There seems to us no doubt, on the basis of both text and](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/sujoriapv18&div=4&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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The Gun-Shy Commonwealth: Self-Defense and Concealed Carry in Post-Heller Massachusetts
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