75% OF STATE ATTORNEYS-GENERAL SUPPORT NRA

Monday, November 23, 2009


Fairfax, Va. --
An overwhelming, bipartisan majority of attorneys general have
signed an amicus curiae, or "friend of the court," brief supporting
the NRA’s position that the Second Amendment is incorporated
against the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. The amicus brief,
prepared by the office of Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott
and bearing the signatures of attorneys general from 38 states,
was filed with the U.S. Supreme Court today in the case of
McDonald v. City of Chicago.

Last week, the NRA filed its brief with the Supreme Court as
Respondent in Support of Petitioner in the McDonald case.
The NRA brief asks the Court to hold that the Second Amendment
applies to state and local governments through the Fourteenth Amendment.

"We are pleased that more than 75 percent of America's state attorneys general
have joined this historic effort in support of our Second Amendment freedoms.
The NRA and gun owners everywhere are grateful for their participation
in ensuring that the Second Amendment applies across the nation,
not just in federal enclaves," said Chris W. Cox, NRA chief lobbyist.
"I would especially like to acknowledge the outstanding work
of Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott in authoring this historic
amicus brief, as well Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray,
Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel and Georgia Attorney
General Thurbert Baker for their leadership in this important effort.”

In September, the Court agreed to consider the McDonald case,
on appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
That court incorrectly claimed that prior Supreme Court precedent
prevented it from holding in favor of incorporation of the Second Amendment.
The NRA believes the Seventh Circuit should have followed the lead of the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in Nordyke v. King,
which found that Supreme Court precedent does not prevent
the Second Amendment from applying to the states through the
Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. As a party in McDonald,
the NRA is actively involved in this case and believes the NRA
brief makes a clear and strong case in favor of incorporation
of the Second Amendment.

Cox concluded, "We sincerely hope the Supreme Court will agree
with the framers of the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment
by holding that the Second Amendment applies to all law-abiding
Americans, no matter what city or state they call home."

Chicago has had a handgun ban and other restrictive gun laws
in place for 27 years. The Supreme Court is expected to hear
the McDonald case in February 2010.



-NRA-