MNGunTalk.com

Gun rights and regulation are therefore as central to the American politics and constitutional law as they have ever been, making this week's decision in Wrenn v. District of Columbia all the more significant. In Wrenn, a divided panel of the D.C. Circuit struck down the district’s permitting scheme, which required those seeking to publicly carry a concealed weapon to first show a “proper reason” for doing so.

Such requirements raise interesting constitutional questions, but have been universally upheld by other courts, meaning that this week’s decision creates—for the moment, at least—an arguable circuit split. And that, in turn, makes it important to understand how the D.C. Circuit’s decision reflects the kinds of issues that might come before the Supreme Court and its newest Justice.