Appeals court upholds Chicago's strict gun laws

Posted on 06-03-2009

Decision by the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals sets the stage for a Supreme Court battle over whether the 2nd Amendment and its protection for gun owners extends to cities and states.

By David G. Savage

Reporting from Washington -- The U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld strict gun control ordinances in Chicago and suburban Oak Park, Ill., setting the stage for a Supreme Court battle over whether the 2nd Amendment and its protection for gun owners extends to state and municipal laws.

In a 3-0 decision, the judges said they were bound by legal precedents that held the 2nd Amendment applied only to federal laws. Judge Sonia Sotomayor, President Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court, in January joined a three-judge panel in New York that came to the same conclusion. Last week, activists cited that decision in calling her an "anti-gun radical."

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