On June 26, 2008 the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) handed down a decision that amounted to a crushing defeat of the anti-civil rights groups all across the nation. Read the decision syllabus on page #####. In a 5 -4 decision the court affirmed what we have known all along, that the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees the right of the individual citizen the right to keep and bear arms!
While this court ruling is a resounding success, it will certainly not sound the end to our fight here in Massachusetts or around the country. Upon hearing the decision our opposition immediately reversed their long standing position on the individual right and then proceeded to claim that SCOTUS had also cleared the way for unlimited restrictions. Of course while the court did discuss licensing and regulation, it made no such rulings and left those issues for decision at a later date.
Knowing all too well that this was not the end of our fight, but instead a new offensive beginning for our side, GOAL wanted to proceed carefully and with purpose. On Thursday, July 17, 2008 GOAL hired Constitutional expert Attorney Stephen Halbrook of Virginia to attend a special meeting of the Board of Directors. (http://www.stephenhalbrook.com) Attorney Halbrook prepared the friend of the Heller brief (Brief for the Amici Curiae) for the 55 U.S. Senators and 250 U.S. Representatives supporting the individual right interest.
During this special meeting, Mr. Halbrook briefed the Board and staff on the particulars of the case and how it might affect Massachusetts in the future. The meeting lasted several hours with great information being put forth on the facts and myths about the decision. Other than celebrating this great victory, Attorney Halbrook cautioned everyone that this was merely the first step in what will undoubtedly be a long process. He stated several times that all of us must proceed carefully and with great planning and purpose. He did state that perhaps the most important impact over time in Massachusetts will be that the Heller decision has undone the infamous 1976 Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court of “Davis”.
This infamous decision by the Commonwealth’s highest court ruled over thirty years ago that no individual right to keep and bear arms existed in Massachusetts. Since that decision, every law and court ruling such as the “Moyer” and “Ruggerio” decisions in the early 1980’s have been based on “Davis”. The “Moyer” and “Ruggerio” rulings stated that since there was no individual right, the burden of proving suitability and need was placed on the citizen seeking a license. The Heller decision should now reverse that over time.
Over the coming months, GOAL will be working with our national and local allies to determine the best course of action. Specific national cases have already been filed to go after clear cut outright bans that will lay the ground work for the future. These specific cases are designed for the next legal step which is to incorporate the individual right into the 14th amendment thus extending the Heller decision to the citizens of the states. GOAL would like to thanks all of our members who have stuck with this fight for so long and remind them that we can all be proud that we were part of history that began the process of restoring yet another CIVIL RIGHT!
While this court ruling is a resounding success, it will certainly not sound the end to our fight here in Massachusetts or around the country. Upon hearing the decision our opposition immediately reversed their long standing position on the individual right and then proceeded to claim that SCOTUS had also cleared the way for unlimited restrictions. Of course while the court did discuss licensing and regulation, it made no such rulings and left those issues for decision at a later date.
Knowing all too well that this was not the end of our fight, but instead a new offensive beginning for our side, GOAL wanted to proceed carefully and with purpose. On Thursday, July 17, 2008 GOAL hired Constitutional expert Attorney Stephen Halbrook of Virginia to attend a special meeting of the Board of Directors. (http://www.stephenhalbrook.com) Attorney Halbrook prepared the friend of the Heller brief (Brief for the Amici Curiae) for the 55 U.S. Senators and 250 U.S. Representatives supporting the individual right interest.
During this special meeting, Mr. Halbrook briefed the Board and staff on the particulars of the case and how it might affect Massachusetts in the future. The meeting lasted several hours with great information being put forth on the facts and myths about the decision. Other than celebrating this great victory, Attorney Halbrook cautioned everyone that this was merely the first step in what will undoubtedly be a long process. He stated several times that all of us must proceed carefully and with great planning and purpose. He did state that perhaps the most important impact over time in Massachusetts will be that the Heller decision has undone the infamous 1976 Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court of “Davis”.
This infamous decision by the Commonwealth’s highest court ruled over thirty years ago that no individual right to keep and bear arms existed in Massachusetts. Since that decision, every law and court ruling such as the “Moyer” and “Ruggerio” decisions in the early 1980’s have been based on “Davis”. The “Moyer” and “Ruggerio” rulings stated that since there was no individual right, the burden of proving suitability and need was placed on the citizen seeking a license. The Heller decision should now reverse that over time.
Over the coming months, GOAL will be working with our national and local allies to determine the best course of action. Specific national cases have already been filed to go after clear cut outright bans that will lay the ground work for the future. These specific cases are designed for the next legal step which is to incorporate the individual right into the 14th amendment thus extending the Heller decision to the citizens of the states. GOAL would like to thanks all of our members who have stuck with this fight for so long and remind them that we can all be proud that we were part of history that began the process of restoring yet another CIVIL RIGHT!
![[smile]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/001.gif "Smile [smile]")
Getting the ball rolling.
![[rolleyes]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/042.gif "Roll Eyes [rolleyes]")
