The Second Amendment

The nature and scope of the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms remained unsettled until recently. Whether the amendment protected an individual or collective right related to militia service was clarified in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008). Speaking for a 5–4 majority in striking down a federal firearms regulation, Justice Scalia held that the amendment protects the individual’s right to keep and bear arms for lawful purposes. The right may be regulated by legislation narrowly tailored to serve a compelling public interest. In McDonald v. Chicago (2010), the Court incorporated the Second Amendment into the Fourteenth, thus extending the right to keep and bear arms to both levels of government.

The War on Terror

The response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, has posed the greatest challenge to American constitutionalism in the new millennium. In a series of cases, the Supreme Court recognized the right of persons detained by the military to challenge their designation as enemy combatants in habeas corpus proceedings, thus extending the habeas jurisdiction of the federal judiciary beyond the territorial limits of the United States. The Court has held that these proceedings must meet certain minimum due process requirements. The holdings make it clear that the Court will not defer to the sweeping national security claims by the Executive that set the stage for the violation of constitutional right during World War II.