The Supreme Court’s 8-1 ruling on Friday in United States v. Rahimi seemed to be a simple decision for all but Justice Clarence Thomas.
The opinion, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, found that laws prohibiting potentially dangerous individuals, such as domestic abusers, from possessing firearms do not violate the Second Amendment. Thomas disagreed.
“There is no doubt that [the law being considered] is irreconcilable with the Second Amendment’s text,” Thomas wrote in his dissenting opinion. “It is also undisputed that the Second Amendment applies to Rahimi.”