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To: Cboldt
In Heller, arms and devices that have been banned a long time, ergo "not in common civilian use," the ban is constitutional. This was done so that bans on military arms (in particular, the M-16 and others banned by 1986 Act) would stand.

When circuit courts disagree, SCOTUS settles the dispute. What happens when SCOTUS disagrees with itself? As far as I know, Miller has not been overturned, simply ignored. Did anyone cite Miller during the Heller arguments?

Nice to see you, BTW

55 posted on 06/04/2019 9:26:08 AM PDT by MileHi (Liberalism is an ideology of parasites, hypocrites, grievance mongers, victims, and control freaks.)
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To: MileHi
-- When circuit courts disagree, SCOTUS settles the dispute. --

Sure. But when Circuits Courts misinterpret SCOTUS precedent, as they did chronically with Miller and Presser (reading both cases for the OPPOSITE of what those cases say), SCOUTS can allow the error to stand, and it did, for decades. SCOTUS is hostile to substantial RKBA.

-- Did anyone cite Miller during the Heller arguments? --

Yeah. Scalia misinterpreted it on purpose. Miller says the government can't interfere with RKBA relating to military grade weapons. Scalia said that Miller stands for the proposition that one a ban stands long enough, it becomes constitutional.

We may as well consider at this point (for we will have to consider eventually) what types of weapons Miller permits. Read in isolation, Miller's phrase "part of ordinary military equipment" could mean that only those weapons useful in warfare are protected. That would be a startling reading of the opinion, since it would mean that the National Firearms Act's restrictions on machineguns (not challenged in Miller) might be unconstitutional, machineguns being useful in warfare in 1939. We think that Miller's "ordinary military equipmen" language must be read in tandem with what comes after: "[O]rdinarily when called for [militia] service [able-bodied] men were expected to appear bearing arms supplied by themselves and of the kind in common use at the time." 307 U. S., at 179. The traditional militia was formed from a pool of men bringing arms "in common use at the time" for lawful purposes like self-defense. "In the colonial and revolutionary war era, [small-arms] weapons used by militiamen and weapons used in defense of person and home were one and the same." State v. Kessler, 289 Ore. 359, 368, 614 P. 2d 94, 98 (1980) (citing G. Neumann, Swords and Blades of the American Revolution 6-15, 252-254 (1973)). Indeed, that is precisely the way in which the Second Amendment's operative clause furthers the purpose announced in its preface. We therefore read Miller to say only that the Second Amendment does not protect those weapons not typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes, such as short-barreled shotguns.

This read is particularly galling, because the Miller opinion says that the short barrel shotgun is within the ambit of the 2nd amendment, if "this weapon is any part of the ordinary military equipment, or that its use could contribute to the common defense," with the Miller decision to reverse and send the case back to the lower court being justified by SCOTUS professing ignorance on this point.

Now that Miller has been misconstrued as a matter of law, all SCOTUS has to do to allow banning of weapons is just delay taking cases long enough that the ban becomes "lonmg standing."

80 posted on 06/04/2019 10:08:46 AM PDT by Cboldt
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