First and Second Amendments
Description
This panel will examine the Supreme Court’s recent and pending First and Second Amendment case law, focusing on how the Court defines the scope of constitutional protections for firearms, speech, and religious exercise. The discussion will include Viramontes v. Cook County, which asks whether the Second Amendment protects the right to own AR-15s; First Choice Women’s Resource Center v. Platkin, involving First Amendment questions concerning freedom of association and donor privacy; and St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy, which raises questions about the continuing validity and scope of Employment Division v. Smith for claims raised under the Free Exercise Clause against generally-applicable laws.
Materials for the Panel
Pending Cases
Viramontes v. Cook County- Description: In Viramontes v. Cook County, the Court will consider whether the Second and Fourteenth Amendments guarantee the right to possess AR-15 platform and similar semiautomatic rifles. The case arises out of Cook County’s law banning the possession, sale, and transfer of what it labels assault weapons.
- Reading Materials:
- St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy
News Articles
- Trump Administration Lets Key Gun Law Lapse Following Court Ruling - Chris Cameron, The New York Times
- Inside the Trump administration’s rapid rollback of gun regulations - Perry Stein, Washington Post
- Four States, One Rifle: Second Amendment Legal Fights On Multiple Fronts -Patrick Eddington, Cato Institute
- A victory for the defendant in United States v. Hemani, but little guidance for the lower courts - Joel Johnson, SCOTUSblog
- This unanimous Supreme Court abortion ruling is a win for privacy - Washington Post Editorial Board
- The nine lives of Employment Division v. Smith - Kelsey Dallas, SCOTUSblog