Abstract
Following District of Columbia v. Heller and McDonald v. City of Chicago, Second Amendment jurisprudence drastically expanded as individuals began challenging state and federal regulations that burden the right to keep and bear arms. In United States v. Meza-Rodriguez, the Seventh Circuit faced a particularly controversial issue when an undocumented immigrant challenged a federal statute that categorically banned undocumented immigrants from exercising Second Amendment rights. Although several other circuits had analyzed the same issue, the Seventh Circuit was the first to hold that undocumented immigrants have Second Amendment rights. However, the court also upheld the constitutionality of the categorical ban, reasoning that it furthers Congress’ goal of keeping guns out of the hands of “presumptively risky people.” This Note argues that the Seventh Circuit created a constitutional anomaly by recognizing the Second Amendment rights of undocumented immigrants while simultaneously upholding a statute which categorically bans undocumented immigrants from exercising those rights.
Recommended Citation
Jennifer Paulson,
We the People: Analyzing the 7th Circuit’s Decision in United States v. Meza-Rodriguez, 798 F.3d 664 (7th Cir. 2015),
41
S. Ill. U. L.J.
163
(2016).
Available at:
https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/siulj/vol41/iss1/7