“I know they’re movies, but you see in older westerns the warden hands the men their gun belts when they get released from prison.”
That’s because it was a given at the time. The released person was now a former prisoner and had paid their debt to society, therefore all their rights were restored. Until the early 1820s there was never a question as to whether your rights were returned once you had done your prescribed time in prison. At first it was one state, Connecticut or Virginia, I believe, then other states started limiting the rights of those who had been convicted of a crime.
In the beginning for those states, it was certain crimes, then more and more crimes were added until almost any crime was sufficient to have your 2nd Amendment, but no other, rights taken away. In those states you could have your right to own a firearms taken from you but still be allowed to retain other rights or privileges.
The 2nd Amendment has for decades been the “red-headed child” of natural rights. Since our nation’s founding, our God-given rights have been chipped away bit by bit. I don’t think we had any national firearms laws until the late 1960’s after Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed. Prior to then, firearms were legislated state by state. Once those laws became national, the noose started tightening.
In the movies and shows as television was introduced, if the warden felt the prisoner continued to pose a threat or was thinking of harming someone, he would warn the thug to be careful or he would find himself right back in jail. However, he still returned to the former prisoner his gun belt and firearm. Of course Matt Dillon always just killed the SOB.
Now, the thugs seldom see the inside of a jail and criminals have more rights than those who have never committed a crime. It is way past time for a judge to rule just as Judge Hardiman ruled in this case. Hurrah for Judge Hardiman!
This a good step toward restoring that. If you are too dangerous to have a firearm, you are too dangerous to release. My rights are not dependent on the good behavior of criminals.