A lot to say about Judge VanDyke's most recent "dissental," but pushing the idea that Bruen is "easy" is especially bizarre in a knife-ban case given the volume and variety of knife restrictions in 19th century America...

With the news that the 5th Cir will hear en banc arguments in a 922(g) commerce clause case, this blog post may be of interest. In short, there are complex debates about the original intent of the CC and accepting D’s argument will have major impacts beyond guns. firearmslaw.duke.edu/2023/11/rahi...

Rahimi and the Original Scope of the Commerce Clause | Duke Center for Firearms Law

firearmslaw.duke.edu

Mark Joseph Stern@mjsdc.bsky.social · 2w ago

The 5th Circuit, sitting en banc, will decide whether §922(g)—the entire federal statute that prohibits violent offenders from possessing firearms—violates the Constitution's commerce clause. A vehicle to increase gun deaths while gutting congressional power. www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub...

Why Lower Courts Agree on AR-15 Bans and Why it May Not Matter (Ft. @andrewwillinger.bsky.social) thereload.fireside.fm/why-lower-co...

Why Lower Courts Agree on AR-15 Bans and Why it May Not Matter (Ft. Andrew Willinger)

Host Stephen Gutowski and guest Andrew Willinger discuss the upcoming Supreme Court AR-15 case.

thereload.fireside.fm

Wolford might represent a major change to step one of Bruen, but lower courts have already been subtly expanding the definition of "arms"... including the 5th Cir in a recent decision I blogged about @dukefirearmslaw.bsky.social: firearmslaw.duke.edu/2026/06/how-...

How Far Does the Definition of “Arms” Extend? | Duke Center for Firearms Law

firearmslaw.duke.edu

Justice Alito yesterday in Wolford vs Justice Alito in 2020 in Ramos 🤔

Enjoyed speaking with June Grasso @bloomberglaw.com today for some quick reactions to the Supreme Court‘s decision in Wolford v. Lopez - check it out here! www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2...

Bloomberg Law: Trump Immigration Wins & Gun Rights - Bloomberg

Host June Grasso speaks with prominent attorneys and legal scholars, analyzing major legal issues and cases in the news.

bloomberg.com

Okay, so now that I've finished all the opinions and thought about it more, here are some of my takeaways: 1) This opinion is a disaster. It changes a bunch of the Bruen methodology, sometimes in subtle ways, but all in ways that make it *much* more difficult for legislatures to regulate guns.

Jake Charles@jacobdcharles.bsky.social · last mo.

Right off the bat Alito begins with anachronism. As @maureenebrady.com brilliantly showed in her recent SLR piece, the Court is projecting modern property categories backwards. www.stanfordlawreview.org/online/prope...

A quick thread on today’s ruling in US v. Hemani, where SCOTUS held the fed ban on possessing guns as an unlawful drug user unconstitutional as applied to a regular marijuana user, 9-0 in favor of the defendant affirming CA5 www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...

Pleased to post my draft article, “Discovering the Historical Anglo-American Constitution.” I study the history of birthright citizenship from the 1100s to the 1700s. The English common-law rule of natural-born subjects was always tied to territory and jurisdiction. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Last week, the Center co-hosted its 7th (!) annual Work-in-Progress conference with scholars across the country, including @jacobdcharles.bsky.social, @gowder.io, @coreyryung.bsky.social, @meganwalshgvp.bsky.social and many others! Thanks to our attendees for their illuminating discussions.

Supreme Court opinions are coming! And Georgia State’s experts are at the ready to help provide analysis for some of the most awaited decisions, including @andrewwillinger.bsky.social, @jvagle.me, and @espinsegall.bsky.social, in addition to me. news.gsu.edu/2026/05/20/g...

Georgia State Law Legal Experts Available to Comment on U.S. Supreme Court Decisions - Georgia State University News - Bondurant Center for Constitutional Law, College of Law, Press Releases -

Georgia State University College of Law legal experts are available to comment on U.S. Supreme Court decisions including birthright citizenship, gun rights, voting rights and geofence warrants.

news.gsu.edu

SCOTUS' history and tradition turn raises thorny questions about what to do w/old laws tainted by discrimination, including in 2 cases this term where the gov't has taken polar opposite approaches. Read on for more from me @dukefirearmslaw.bsky.social today... firearmslaw.duke.edu/2026/04/tain...

Tainted Historical Statutes in Wolford and Barbara | Duke Center for Firearms Law

In 2022, Bruen ushered in a novel test for Second Amendment challenges, which requires the government to offer historical analogues to support modern gun laws. Lower courts have struggled with questio...

firearmslaw.duke.edu

As profs are lining up courses & casebooks for next year, I want to plug again the Second Amendment casebook that I & Blocher Madeira & Miller wrote. 📖👇 2A Law is an increasingly impt area of conlaw & today's law students show tons of interest in the topic. faculty.westacademic.com/Book/Detail?...

From the Second Amendment to voting rights to birthright citizenship, major decisions from the Supreme Court will have great significance for the American public. GSU Bondurant Center's experts are gearing up for them all, including @andrewwillinger.bsky.social and @espinsegall.bsky.social.

I blogged at @dukefirearmslaw.bsky.social about 9th Cir. Judge Lawrence VanDyke and his unusual style of judicial opinion writing, which some have labeled "post modern." Check it out here 👇 firearmslaw.duke.edu/2026/04/post...

NEW: I wrote up a short, breezy 3,700 word post for @dukefirearmslaw.bsky.social blog w/ reactions to the Supreme Court's oral arguments in US v. Hemani earlier this week. I may be overly optimistic about getting some coherence in Second Amendment doctrine. firearmslaw.duke.edu/2026/03/brea...

Breaking Down the Hemani Arguments | Duke Center for Firearms Law

firearmslaw.duke.edu

A major theme of yesterday's Hemani 2A arg: under Bruen can courts *ever* weigh the govt's leg judgment that certain groups (like drug users) are too dangerous to have guns. I've argued these assessments are inevitable even w/history-focused approaches... www.wakeforestlawreview.com/wp-content/u...

Proud to announce the opening of the Emmet Bondurant Center for Constitutional Law, Practice & Democracy. With @anthonymkreis.bsky.social, @andrewwillinger.bsky.social, and Neil Kinkopf, we’ll fight for the rule of law and democracy as Emmet has done for over 60 years. news.gsu.edu/2026/02/26/n...

New Center to Focus on Constitutional Law, Practice, Democracy - Georgia State University News - Bondurant Center for Constitutional Law, College of Law, Faculty & Research, Press Releases, Pro-Bono &...

The Georgia State University College of Law is home to the new Emmet J. Bondurant Center for Constitutional Law, Practice & Democracy. The center is named for Emmet J. Bondurant, a prominent trial law...

news.gsu.edu

After an exciting week of presentations by @profloriann.bsky.social and @jctate1215.bsky.social, we’re gearing up to host @yeargain.bsky.social on Monday at Georgia State! Thanks to my colleagues @amwhelan.bsky.social, Ryan Rowberry, and @andrewwillinger.bsky.social for being superb hosts!

a blue flag with georgia state written on it

ALT: a blue flag with georgia state written on it

media.tenor.com

On the blog @espinsegall.bsky.social previews the next SCOTUS 2nd Amendment case, US v Hemani, which, he says, can be resolved by narrowly construing the relevant statute to avoid vagueness rather than applying the ridiculous history-and-tradition test its recent 2d Amendment cases have developed. 👇

Thrilled that my article Private Governance and Originalism will be published in the Stanford Law Review @stanlrev.bsky.social! The article explains why private groups including schools, corps & other orgs create unique challenges (and opportunities) under originalist "history & tradition" tests

🚨🚨 Georgia State's Constitutional Law program is growing!🚨🚨 Thanks to a very exciting development, we're looking for someone to join the College of Law's public law faculty, including @espinsegall.bsky.social, @andrewwillinger.bsky.social, Neil Kinkopf, and me. facultycareers.gsu.edu/postings/6611

www.cnn.com/2026/01/26/p...

Gun rights groups and legal experts question Trump administration’s stance on the Second Amendment after shooting | CNN Politics

Claims by Trump administration officials that the man fatally shot by a federal agent in Minneapolis lacked a right to possess a firearm and that his killing was justified are being dismissed by legal...

cnn.com

I blogged on @dukefirearmslaw.bsky.social, where I'll continue to contribute occasional posts as an affiliated scholar, about the gun charges in the Maduro indictment. Check it out below! firearmslaw.duke.edu/2026/01/the-...

The Maduro Indictment: When Can US Gun Restrictions Apply Beyond American Borders? | Duke Center for Firearms Law

firearmslaw.duke.edu

I was pleased to contribute this short essay on VanDerStok, ghost guns, and the Trump admin's policy priorities to @theregreview.bsky.social annual Supreme Court recap series! www.theregreview.org/2025/07/23/w...

VanDerStok and the Ghosts of Gun Deregulation | The Regulatory Review

The Supreme Court weighs public safety concerns surrounding ghost guns in recent Second Amendment decision.

theregreview.org

Check out my blog post @statecourtreport.bsky.social on a new gun decision from the Georgia Supreme Court that asks, in part, what happens to original meaning when state constitutional language is readopted over time... statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...

Georgia Supreme Court Allows Under-21 Handgun Carry Ban

The court looked to the state’s own constitutional history rather than following recent U.S. Supreme Court gun decisions.

statecourtreport.org

“While many state courts reflexively lockstep…the Kansas Court of Appeals took a different path in a recent gun case due to a lurking complexity unique to the right-to-arms context.” @andrewwillinger.bsky.social discusses the complexity of lockstepping post-Bruen.

The Complexity of Lockstepping Post-Bruen

A Kansas court recently refused to follow federal precedent in interpreting the state constitutional right to bear arms.

statecourtreport.org

Does originalism always work in practice when it filters down to state courts? I blogged @statecourtreport.bsky.social about a recent Kansas case that confronted that issue in the gun rights-context @brennancenter.bsky.social statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...

The Complexity of Lockstepping Post-Bruen

A Kansas court recently refused to follow federal precedent in interpreting the state constitutional right to bear arms.

statecourtreport.org

Now that it is PrawfsBlawg is official, I want to express my excitement that @andrewwillinger.bsky.social will join GSU's College of Law next year as part of our constitutional law cohort. He's going to be an exceptional addition to our faculty and we look forward to him coming to Atlanta!

a blue flag with georgia state written on it

ALT: a blue flag with georgia state written on it

media.tenor.com

“Mel Gibson is a friend of the president and that should be justification enough" - only underscores the need for Congress to resume funding an actual gun rights restoration program that's broadly available, rather than doing this ad hoc based on fame/connections www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...

DOJ official says she was fired after opposing the restoration of Mel Gibson's gun rights

Gibson, a supporter of Trump, lost his right to purchase or own a handgun after a 2011 domestic violence misdemeanor conviction.

nbcnews.com