High court looks at reach of Second Amendment

[March 02, 2010]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- The right to bear arms is back before the Supreme Court. This time the focus is on handgun bans in Chicago and one of its suburbs.

Caption: In this photo taken Friday, Colleen and David Lawson stand in their home in Chicago. The Lawsons are two of four plaintiffs in the Chicago gun ban lawsuit going before the Supreme Court this week. (AP photo by M. Spencer Green)

The justices were hearing arguments Tuesday in a case that asks them to extend their 2008 decision striking down a Washington, D.C., gun ban to state and local laws.

The court ruled then that the Second Amendment gives individuals a right to possess guns for self-defense and other purposes, but that decision only applied to federal laws, such as Washington, D.C.'s.

The court has ruled that most of the rest of the Bill of Rights applies to state and local governments.

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley says local officials need flexibility to decide how best to protect their communities.

[Associated Press; By MARK SHERMAN]

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