District of Columbia v Heller

District of Columbia v Heller is a 2008 decision of the United States Supreme Court that recognized an individual right to keep and bear arms under the Second Amendment. The District of Columbia banned the possession of handguns in the home and required that any other lawfully owned firearm be kept unloaded and either disassembled or secured with a trigger lock; Dick Heller, a special police officer, challenged the law after the District refused to register a handgun he wished to keep at home. The Court held by a five to four majority that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, for traditionally lawful purposes such as self defense within the home, and struck down the handgun ban and trigger lock requirement as unconstitutional. The decision was the first time the Supreme Court had squarely held the Second Amendment protects an individual rather than only a collective militia based right.