Attorney General's News Release

June 26, 2008

Attorney General Jay Nixon's statement on today's U.S. Supreme Court Second Amendment decision in D.C. v. Heller

Jefferson City, Mo. - Attorney General Jay Nixon today issued the following statement regarding the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in D.C. v. Heller:

"Today the United States Supreme Court affirmed what we in Missouri have long held as a mainstream value: that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to keep and bear arms. I am pleased that the Court recognized that the Washington, D.C. gun ban went far beyond what most Americans consider reasonable in the regulation of firearms. I continue to support Missouri's public safety measures to insure that guns don't fall into the hands of criminals. But it is equally important that we continue to recognize and protect our firearms rights secured by our Founding Fathers."

In February, Nixon and 30 other attorneys general filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court urging it to adopt the position that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to keep and bear arms.