What Is the 2nd Amendment
The 2nd Amendment is the part of the Bill of Rights that protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms. The Supreme Court held in 2008 that it protects an individual right, most of all for self-defense, and not only for militia service. Like other rights, it has limits, and nearly every gun fight in court today is over where those limits sit.
The 2nd is one of the 10 amendments in the Bill of Rights. Our guide to all 27 amendments shows where it fits.
The right is individual and it applies to every state. What remains unsettled is which gun laws fit the Nation’s history.
Key facts
- The Court ruled 5-4 in 2008 that the right belongs to individuals, not only to militias (Heller).
- Since 2022, a gun law survives only if it fits the “historical tradition of firearm regulation” (Bruen).
- In June 2026 the Court struck a Hawaii carry rule (Wolford) and rejected one drug-user prosecution (Hemani).
- About 42 in 100 adults live in a home with a gun, per Pew’s June 2023 survey (Pew).
The 2nd Amendment Text, Phrase by Phrase
The whole amendment is one sentence of 27 words, ratified on December 15, 1791: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." Most of the argument over it comes from how the first half, about a militia, connects to the second half, about “the people.”
What each phrase of the 2nd Amendment means under current Supreme Court rulings
Source: District of Columbia v. Heller (2008); New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen (2022); United States v. Hemani (2026)
The right protects “arms” in common use for lawful purposes, and the Court has said it reaches modern weapons, not only the muskets of 1791. That is why the next big question, whether states may ban AR-15-style rifles, turns on how many Americans own them. Our assault weapons ban explainer covers that case.
Landmark 2nd Amendment Cases, 1791 to 2026
For most of its history the amendment did little work in court. It was ratified in 1791, read in 1876 as a limit on the federal government only, and tied to militia weapons in 1939. Then the Court recognized an individual right in 2008, applied it to the states in 2010, rewrote the test in 2022, softened that test in 2024, and applied it twice more in 2026.
- Bill of Rights ratified The amendment limits only the new federal government.
- Cruikshank: federal limit only The Court says the amendment does not restrict states.
- Miller: militia-linked weapons A short-barreled shotgun law is upheld because no link to a militia was shown.
- Heller: an individual right D.C.'s handgun ban falls, 5-4. The right covers self-defense at home.
- McDonald: applies to states Chicago's handgun ban falls, 5-4, through the 14th Amendment.
- Bruen: the history test New York's "proper cause" permit rule falls, 6-3. Gun laws must fit historical tradition.
- Rahimi: dangerous people disarmed The Court upholds the gun ban for people under domestic-violence orders, 8-1.
- Hemani and Wolford A marijuana user's prosecution and Hawaii's private-property carry rule both fall.
Sources: Supreme Court opinions via Cornell LII and supremecourt.gov.
How the Supreme Court has read the 2nd Amendment: 1791: Bill of Rights ratified (The amendment limits only the new federal government.). 1876: Cruikshank: federal limit only (The Court says the amendment does not restrict states.). 1939: Miller: militia-linked weapons (A short-barreled shotgun law is upheld because no link to a militia was shown.). 2008: Heller: an individual right (D.C.'s handgun ban falls, 5-4. The right covers self-defense at home.). 2010: McDonald: applies to states (Chicago's handgun ban falls, 5-4, through the 14th Amendment.). 2022: Bruen: the history test (New York's "proper cause" permit rule falls, 6-3. Gun laws must fit historical tradition.). 2024: Rahimi: dangerous people disarmed (The Court upholds the gun ban for people under domestic-violence orders, 8-1.). 2026: Hemani and Wolford (A marijuana user's prosecution and Hawaii's private-property carry rule both fall.).
1791: The Bill of Rights took effect on December 15, and at first it limited only the federal government.
1876: In United States v. Cruikshank, the Court said the right to bear arms “is not a right granted by the Constitution” and that the amendment restrained only Congress. The case came out of the 1873 Colfax massacre in Louisiana, and the ruling ordered the release of three men convicted of conspiring against the rights of two Black citizens.
1939: United States v. Miller upheld the National Firearms Act as applied to a short-barreled shotgun, because no one showed the weapon had a “reasonable relationship” to a militia. Justice John Paul Stevens, dissenting in Heller, wrote that “hundreds of judges” had relied on that militia-based reading since 1939 (Heller dissent).
2008: District of Columbia v. Heller held that the amendment protects “an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia.” Justice Antonin Scalia wrote for the 5-4 majority. The ruling struck D.C.’s ban on handguns in the home and said “nothing in our opinion should be taken to cast doubt” on long-standing bans for felons, the mentally ill, and sensitive places.
2010: McDonald v. City of Chicago applied the right to state and local governments, 5-4, through the 14th Amendment. Justice Samuel Alito wrote the main opinion.
2022: New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen struck New York’s rule that a person needed “proper cause” to carry a handgun in public. Justice Clarence Thomas’s 6-3 opinion replaced the balancing tests lower courts had used with a test built on history.
2024: United States v. Rahimi upheld the federal ban on guns for people under domestic-violence restraining orders, 8-1. Zackey Rahimi had dragged his girlfriend back to his car and fired a gun as she escaped (the Court said it was unclear whether he aimed at her or a witness), and a Texas court found he posed “a credible threat” to her safety. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that a person found to pose that kind of threat “may be temporarily disarmed.” Justice Thomas dissented.
2026: In United States v. Hemani, decided June 18, all nine justices agreed the government could not prosecute a Texas man for keeping a gun at home only because he used marijuana about every other day. A week later, Wolford v. Lopez struck, 6-3, a Hawaii law that barred permit holders from carrying on private property open to the public, such as stores and gas stations, unless the owner said yes.
How Courts Judge Gun Laws Now
Since 2022, a judge does not weigh a gun law’s safety benefits against its burden. The judge asks whether the law fits the country’s history of gun regulation, and the government has to prove that it does.
The test a court applies to a gun law after Bruen and Rahimi
- Step 1 Does the text cover it? The court asks whether the law touches "the people," "arms," and keeping or carrying them. If so, the conduct is presumed protected.
- Step 2 The government must show history The burden shifts to the government to show the law fits "the Nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation."
- Step 3 Principles, not a historical twin Rahimi says a modern law needs the same "why" and "how" as old laws, not an identical match.
- Result Upheld or struck If no tradition fits, the law falls, however much safety it may buy.
Sources: Bruen (2022), at 17 and 24; Rahimi (2024), at 692; restated in Hemani (2026).
The test changed who wins. After Heller, nearly every appeals court used a two-step approach that weighed a law’s benefits against its burden. In Bruen, Justice Thomas called that “one step too many.” Justice Stephen Breyer, in dissent, argued that judges are not trained historians and that the new test would leave lower courts guessing.
Rahimi answered part of that worry two years later. Chief Justice Roberts warned against reading history so narrowly that it leaves “a law trapped in amber,” so a modern law can pass if it shares the principles behind old ones. In Hemani, the government pointed to 19th-century laws on “habitual drunkards,” and Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote that those laws differed from the drug-user ban “on every single metric the government invites us to consider.”
Which Gun Laws Still Stand
Most gun laws have survived. In the year after Bruen, courts ruled on 464 Second Amendment challenges in 326 opinions, and granted relief, at least in part, in about 21 of every 100, according to a 2024 study in the Virginia Law Review.
Challenges to where guns may be carried went from losing most of the time after Heller to winning most of the time after Bruen. Criminal defendants almost never won under either test.
| Group | After Heller | Year after Bruen | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Challenges to where guns are banned (sensitive places) | 18% | 69% | +51 pts |
| Civil lawsuits challenging a gun law | 15% | 55% | +40 pts |
| Challenges to carry-permit rules | 9% | 33% | +24 pts |
| Criminal defendants challenging their charge | 6% | 5% | −1 pts |
Source: Ruben, Smart & Rowhani-Rahbar, "One Year Post-Bruen: An Empirical Assessment," 110 Va. L. Rev. Online 20 (2024), comparing 464 post-Bruen challenges with Ruben and Blocher's post-Heller data (67 Duke L.J. 1433, 2018).
Heller’s own list of laws it did not question still guides courts: bans for people convicted of felonies and people found mentally ill, bans in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, and conditions on commercial sales. The fights now are at the edges of each one. Which “sensitive places” count? Which people with a criminal record? Which guns?
The Court’s 2026 rulings kept those edges narrow on purpose. In Hemani, Justice Gorsuch wrote that the Court did not address banning addicts or people who are intoxicated, and did not address the felon ban, adding that “we do not pass on them either way.” A related page covers the policy fights in detail: red flag laws, ghost guns, and assault weapons bans.
What the Rulings Mean for Gun Owners
The rulings set a floor, and state law does the rest. What applies to you depends on where you live and on your own record, so start with your situation below.
What the law says, by situation
Open the one closest to yours. This is general information, not legal advice. State laws vary, so check your state's rules before you buy or carry.
A court has issued a domestic-violence restraining order against me
- Federal law bars you from having a gun while a qualifying order is in effect, such as one that finds you a credible threat to a partner or child.
- Ask your lawyer or the court how to turn in or transfer any guns you own.
- Do not try to buy a gun while the order stands. Lying on the federal purchase form is a separate felony.
The Supreme Court upheld this ban 8-1 in United States v. Rahimi (2024).
I use marijuana and want to own a gun
- The federal ban on guns for "unlawful users" of drugs is still law, and marijuana is still illegal under federal law.
- The federal purchase form asks about drug use. Answering falsely is a crime in its own right.
- Talk to a lawyer before you buy, even if your state allows marijuana.
In United States v. Hemani (2026), the Court threw out one prosecution based on marijuana use alone, but it did not strike the law.
I am under 21
- Federal law bars licensed dealers from selling you a handgun until you turn 21. You can buy a rifle or shotgun from a dealer at 18.
- Some states set higher ages or add rules for private sales.
In June 2026 the Supreme Court declined to hear a group of challenges to the under-21 limits, so the federal rule stands.
I have a felony conviction
- Federal law bars anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than a year in prison from having a gun.
- Some states restore gun rights through a pardon or expungement. Ask a lawyer in your state.
The Court has never questioned the felon ban, and in 2026 it said again that it was not deciding that question.
I want to carry my handgun in another state
- There is no national carry permit. Each state decides whether to honor yours.
- Check the other state's law, and the places it bans guns, before you travel.
After Bruen, states cannot deny permits for lack of "proper cause," but they can still require one and ban guns in sensitive places.
Where the 2nd Amendment Fights Stand
The next ruling that could change gun law for millions of people comes in the term that starts in October. Since July 2026, the Justice Department’s new Second Amendment Section has also sued states and cities over their gun laws.
2nd Amendment fights, and where each one stands
As of September 26, 2026
- Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins In litigation, argument set
Granted June 30, 2026 and combined. Set for argument on December 2, 2026. The question is whether the Second Amendment protects AR-15-style rifles. (source)
- Hawaii's ban on carrying onto private property without consent (Wolford v. Lopez) Final ruling, struck down
Struck 6-3 on June 25, 2026. Justice Alito wrote for the Court; Justices Kagan, Sotomayor and Jackson dissented. (source)
- Gun ban for drug users, applied to a marijuana user (United States v. Hemani) Final ruling, narrow ruling
On June 18, 2026, all nine justices rejected this prosecution. The law itself still stands. (source)
- Gun ban under domestic-violence orders (United States v. Rahimi) Final ruling, upheld
Upheld 8-1 on June 21, 2024. (source)
- Federal limits on gun sales to people under 21 Final ruling, review denied
In June 2026 the Court declined to hear a group of challenges. Justice Thomas would have heard one, over the federal handgun-sale limit. (source)
- Justice Department Second Amendment Section Agency action, 6 actions
It lists 5 lawsuits and one investigation from June to September 2026, against Minnesota's waiting period, California's handgun rules, Virginia, San Jose, Montgomery County, Maryland, and Philadelphia police. (source)
- Executive Order 14206, "Protecting Second Amendment Rights" Agency action
Signed February 7, 2025. It told the Attorney General to review federal gun rules and actions from January 2021 through January 2025, including ATF's 2022 kit and frame rule. (source)
The rifle case asks a question the Court has never answered: whether a whole class of popular guns is protected. Twelve states and D.C. ban the sale of assault weapons in some form, as the assault weapons ban page details. A case argued in December would normally be decided by the end of the term, in mid-2027.
Gun Deaths and Public Views on Gun Laws
The legal test looks to history, but the stakes are counted in lives. In 2024, 44,447 people died from gunshots in the United States, about 121 a day, according to CDC data.
Most gun deaths are not murders. About 62 of every 100 were suicides.
If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, free and open all day. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911. Moving guns out of the home during a crisis saves lives, and a red flag order is one legal way to do it.
Self-defense weighs on the other side: 72% of owners told Pew that protection is a major reason they own a gun.
Most Americans want stricter gun laws, but a large minority does not.
- Stricter (58%)
- About right (26%)
- Less strict (15%)
- Did not answer (1%)
Source: Pew Research Center, "Key facts about Americans and guns" (July 24, 2024).
The Honest Disagreement Over the 2nd Amendment
The case for a broad right rests on the text and on self-defense. The amendment says “the right of the people,” the same words used for other individual rights. Gun rights groups argue that the history test protects the right from judges who would balance it away, and they note that before Bruen, six states and D.C. gave carry permits only to people who could show a special need.
The case for more room to regulate rests on the militia clause and on how the test works. The four Heller dissenters read the amendment as a militia right. Justice Elena Kagan, dissenting in Wolford, wrote that Hawaii’s law matched colonial laws that barred carrying guns “on other people’s lands” without permission, so it should have passed the Court’s own test.
Both sides find fault with how the history test works in practice. In the 2024 study, federal trial judges named by Republican presidents granted relief in 33% of challenges (86 of 261), and judges named by Democratic presidents in 2% (3 of 131). The study’s authors concluded that Bruen “has not meaningfully constrained judges.” Gun rights advocates answer that the older balancing tests let judges uphold nearly every law.
What the 2nd Amendment Does Not Do
- It does not protect every weapon. Heller covered arms “in common use” for lawful purposes. Machine guns remain tightly regulated, and the Court has not questioned that.
- It does not bar background checks. Federal law has required licensed dealers to run instant checks since 1998, and no Supreme Court ruling has held that the 2nd Amendment forbids them.
- It does not stop private businesses from banning guns. The amendment limits government. Wolford was about a state rule that set the default, not an owner’s own choice to post a “no guns” sign.
- It does not guarantee a gun to anyone a court finds dangerous. Rahimi allows temporary disarmament after a court finding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can people with felony convictions ever get their gun rights back?
Sometimes. Federal law bars people convicted of crimes punishable by more than a year in prison, but a conviction that has been pardoned, expunged or set aside, or for which civil rights were restored, does not count unless the restoration says the person still may not have guns. In December 2024 the full Third Circuit, in Range v. Attorney General, ruled for a Pennsylvania man whose only such conviction was a 1995 food stamp fraud, a state misdemeanor punishable by up to five years.
Does the 2nd Amendment protect AR-15s?
The Supreme Court has not decided. It will hear challenges to rifle bans in Illinois and Connecticut on December 2, 2026. A case argued in December would normally be decided by the end of the term, in mid-2027.
Do people in the United Kingdom have a right to bear arms?
Only a limited one. The Bill of Rights of 1689 says Protestant subjects “may have Arms for their Defence suitable to their Conditions and as allowed by Law,” so Parliament sets the limits. After the 1996 Dunblane school shooting, Parliament banned most private handguns in 1997.
What You Can Do
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Learn your state’s gun laws before you buy or travel. Your state attorney general or state police usually publish the permit rules and the list of places where guns are banned. The rules change fast, and not knowing them is not a defense.
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If someone in your home is in crisis, get the guns out for now. Ask a trusted friend or a gun shop to hold them, and call or text 988 for help. In most states that have them, family members or police can ask a court for a red flag order.
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Tell your state legislators what you think of the gun bills in front of them. State law now does most of the work, from waiting periods to where guns may be carried. Name the bill and say why. Our letter-writing guide shows how.
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Follow the December 2 rifle case. The ruling in Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins will decide whether state bans on AR-15-style rifles survive. Our assault weapons ban page will track it.