Vox Sentences - The Supreme Court's big guns case

Tuesday, October 24, 2023:

Hi subscribers, 

On the docket today is a breakdown of the Supreme Court’s next gun rights case and an update on the hostage situation in Gaza. 

— Rachel DuRose, Future Perfect fellow

The Supreme Court confronts its own failure in an appalling case about guns 

Selcuk Acar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

On November 7, the next gun rights case — United States v. Rahimi — will be brought before the Supreme Court. The case will decide whether domestic abusers are allowed to possess firearms. 

The lowdown: Three years ago, Zackey Rahimi physically assaulted his girlfriend and fired a gun at a bystander who witnessed the abuse, according to the Justice Department. Rahimi then threatened to shoot his girlfriend if she told anyone about his abuse. Additionally, Rahimi is accused of five shootings between December 2020 and January 2021. 

In 2022, a federal appeals court, the Fifth Circuit, struck down a federal law — which under certain circumstances calls for abusers to be disarmed before being convicted of their crimes — and ruled that Rahimi has a constitutional right to own a gun. Here’s what led to this ruling and what’s likely to come:

• The precedent set by New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. In this 2022 ruling, the Supreme Court held that to justify nearly any law regulating firearms, “the government must demonstrate that the regulation is consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.” Essentially, lawyers defending any gun law must find a similar case from the 18th century. 
   
• Even the Supreme Court justices who made the Bruen ruling knew some exceptions would be necessary. The justices who formed the majority ruling on Bruen subscribed to the concept of “originalism,” or the belief that the Constitution means what it did at the time it was ratified. But some of these justices, in a separate concurring opinion, also laid out clear exceptions to the universal right to bear arms, particularly for convicted felons and the mentally ill. 
  
  
• “It’s likely the Supreme Court will reverse the Fifth Circuit’s decision, despite the fact that the Fifth Circuit's decision is entirely consistent with Bruen,” senior correspondent Ian Millhiser told me. 

The stakes: “I think the Supreme Court was probably drunk on ideology when it decided Bruen,” Ian told me. “The issue, in this case, is whether people who endanger their own families have a right to own a gun — and I'm not convinced that there are more than three justices on the current Court who would accept the monstrous proposition that such individuals do have such a right.”

Read Ian’s full piece here.

The ongoing hostage situation in Gaza

Yocheved Lifshitz, one of the two freed hostages, speaks to media in front of Ichilov Hospital, after she was released by Hamas from the Gaza Strip last night. Ilia Yefimovich/Picture Alliance via Getty Images

Hamas released two more hostages this week. Their release follows that of an American mother and daughter earlier this week. Hamas claims it is still holding approximately 200 hostages, and the Islamic Jihad has claimed it is holding 30 hostages.

• Nurit Cooper, 79, and Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, were released Monday following negotiations involving Egypt, Qatar, and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Lifshitz said she was forced to walk for miles through Gaza’s underground tunnels and went through “hell.” She said once inside the tunnels, Hamas provided medical care and hygiene products and treated the hostages gently. Cooper and Lifshitz's husbands, who were kidnapped with them, remain in Gaza. [NBC]
   
• Israeli, Mexican, Brazilian, German, Thai, and American nationals are among those still held hostage by Hamas. On Monday, US President Joe Biden said ceasefire talks would not begin until Hamas released all hostages. [CNN]
  
  
• While Israel delayed their ground invasion of Gaza, airstrikes continued, and now over 5,000 people in Gaza have been killed. Around 40 percent, or 2,000, of these deaths are children, Gaza’s Ministry of Health reported. More than 400 of these deaths occurred within the last two days. [Al Jazeera]

Here’s where you can keep track of all our developing coverage of the war. If you have questions not yet answered, let us know here.

• Scientists unearthed a clue as to why long Covid sufferers experience brain fog, memory loss, and fatigue. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania discovered that a lack of serotonin circulating in the body was an indicator of whether an individual experienced lasting Covid symptoms. [NPR]
   

• In 2022, China widened its lead over the US in AI patent filings, indicating a “determination to shape and influence” this technology. Last year, Chinese institutions applied for 29,853 AI-related patents, according to data provided to Bloomberg. In contrast, US institutions applied for only 16,805 AI-related patents in 2022, with US filings shrinking 5 percent last year. [Bloomberg]
   

• Marsh fires in Louisiana created a “super fog” that caused a 158-car pileup. At least seven people died after the fog reduced visibility for drivers commuting on Interstate 55 on Monday. [BBC] 

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