The 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
- It reads "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."
- Among the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, ratified in 1791 and designed to protect personal freedoms.
- The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2008 and 2010 the amendment establishes the right for an individual to possess guns in the home for self defense.
- The court said the right to bear arms is subject to regulatory measures such as limits on the rights of felons and the mentally ill and laws forbidding the carrying of weapons in certain locations.