Will Personnel Shuffle Harm D.C. Gun Ban Case?
The lawyer who took the lead role in preparing the District’s appeal on its handgun ban was fired just one week before the brief he helped prepare is due to be filed to the Supreme Court. The Washington Post reported on its Web site yesterday that city lawyer Alan Morrison had been fired for, he suggested to the paper, political reasons. The Supreme Court is set to hear the case as early as March, and its interpretation of whether the Second Amendment guarantees the right to possess handguns could have ripple effects in crime-ridden cities across the country. In this morning’s edition, at-large D.C. Council member Phil Mendelson complained to the Post that the mid-stream firing was “like committing hari-kari.” Mendelson also said he had only heard positive things about Morrison’s work. The high court has agreed to interpret, for the first time ever, a confusing clause in the Second Amendment. The justices are expected to clarify whether the amendment applies to individuals as well as m
