Constitutional Law

Dick Heller shows up to register his gun

And is turned down because he wanted to register a semi-auto. Confusing story here. Confusing because the reporter doesn't know the difference between clips and rounds, and it sounds as if DC police, in spoon-feeding the reporter the concept of semiauto, explained that it loaded "from the bottom," which the reporter took as the definition. (DC law defines any handgun that can accept a magazine with 12 or more rounds as a forbidden machine gun, whether you have a magazine of that type or not, and whether it's standard or not. If anyone has ever made mag. that fits your handgun and can hold 12 or more rounds, your handgun is verbotten).

UPDATE: I've heard that Heller will be back to register a revolver tomorrow.

UPDATE Pt. 2: The Heller Sup. Ct. ruling wouldn't cover this, since he had said he wanted to register a .38 revolver. The issue of the semiauto restriction thus wasn't considered by the Supremes. It'd require a new case to test that.

Full post as published by Of Arms and the Law on July 17, 2008 (boomark / email).