District of Columbia v. Heller: Supreme Court Affirms Individual Right to Gun Ownership

In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in District of Columbia v. Heller that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess firearms, unconnected with service in a militia, for traditionally lawful purposes such as self-defense within the home.

Justice Scalia, writing for the majority, struck down provisions of DC's Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975 that banned handgun registration and required all firearms be kept unloaded and disassembled. This was the first Supreme Court case to explore the meaning of the Second Amendment since United States v. Miller (1939), and the first time the Court recognized the individual right over the collective militia theory.

This landmark ruling fundamentally changed the legal landscape of gun rights in America and laid the groundwork for subsequent decisions expanding Second Amendment protections.