Courts Extend Second Amendment Protection to Knives, Body Armor Ahead of Supreme Court AR-15 Case

Two federal courts ruled Wednesday that switchblade knives and body armor qualify as arms protected by the Second Amendment. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a federal law restricting interstate commerce in switchblade knives violated the amendment. A federal judge in the Western District of New York struck down New York's restrictions on personal body armor. The rulings come as the Supreme Court prepares to hear oral arguments in Viramontes v. Cook County, which could decide whether AR-15-style rifles count as protected arms. Dudley Brown, president of the National Association for Gun Rights, whose group filed an amicus brief in the case, said a ruling against AR-15 bans could influence challenges to limits on magazines, automatic knives, body armor and other defensive equipment. Separately, a Colorado case involving Catholics' First Amendment rights is before the Supreme Court, and one account says reliance on taxpayer funding can lead to religious discrimination.

Left-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while right-leaning and alternative/independent outlets had. Right-leaning coverage is led by Fox News, which stresses the two Wednesday rulings, gun-rights optimism and Brown's comments on the AR-15 case. National Review turns to religious liberty, presenting the Colorado case as an example of taxpayer funding leading to discrimination against Catholics. Neither right-leaning piece addresses voting rights. The alternative/independent sources take different angles. The Hill argues that states freed from federal oversight, many in the old Confederacy, have adopted voting restrictions that dilute minority voting power. Reason runs a historical note that Justice John Blair resigned from the Court on October 25, 1795.