NB: "historical tradition of firearm regulation," perhaps should only
apply to firearms constructed the same as those of the historical
period, front loading, almost exclusively single round, with a ram rod.
In that case, during the reloading of a single firearm, the intended
victims might be able to overcome the attacker, not possible with modern
antipersonnel assault rifles and sidearms (not designed for hunting and
general use, but specifically to kill humans).
https://news.yahoo.com/ban-guns-serial-numbers-removed-192145632.html
Reuters
Ban on guns with serial numbers removed is unconstitutional -U.S. judge
FILE PHOTO: Guns on sale are stored in a case at the Cabela's store in
Fort Worth, Texas
Thu, October 13, 2022 at 12:21 PM
By Brendan Pierson
(Reuters) -A federal judge in West Virginia has ruled that a federal ban
on possessing a gun with its serial number removed is unconstitutional,
the first such ruling since the U.S. Supreme Court dramatically expanded
gun rights in June.
U.S. District Judge Joseph Goodwin in Charleston on Wednesday found that
the law was not consistent with the United States' "historical tradition
of firearm regulation," the new standard laid out by the Supreme Court
in its landmark ruling.
The decision came in a criminal case charging a man, Randy Price, with
illegally possessing a gun with the serial number removed that was found
in his car. The judge dismissed that charge, though Price is still
charged with illegally possessing the gun after being convicted of
previous felonies.
Price's lawyer, Lex Coleman, called the decision "thoughtful, measured
and accurate." A spokesperson for the office of U.S. Attorney William
Thompson in Charleston, which is prosecuting the case, said the office
was "reviewing the ruling and assessing options."
The federal law in question prohibits anyone from transporting a gun
with the serial number removed across state lines, or from possessing
such a gun if it has ever been transported across state lines.
Serial numbers, first required by the federal Gun Control Act of 1968,
are intended to prevent illegal gun sales and make it easier to solve
crimes by allowing individual guns to be traced.
Price argued that the law is unconstitutional in light of the Supreme
Court's June 24 ruling in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc
v. Bruen. That ruling held that under the Second Amendment of the U.S.
Constitution, the government cannot restrict the right to possess
firearms unless the restriction is consistent with historical tradition.
Bruen said serial numbers were not required when the Second Amendment
was adopted in 1791, and were not widely used until 1968, putting them
outside that tradition.
(Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi,
Nick Zieminski, David Gregorio and Marguerita Choy)
