[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 46 (Wednesday, March 23, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H1556]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS

  (Mr. GIBBS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend the decision by the 
U.S. Supreme Court earlier this week regarding the Second Amendment.
  By overturning the decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Court, the 
Court has reaffirmed not only that Americans have the right to self-
defense, but also that stun guns are covered under the Second 
Amendment.
  The case began when a woman named Jaime Caetano was continually 
threatened by an abusive ex-boyfriend who, at one point, put her in the 
hospital. At the urging of a friend, she began carrying a stun gun for 
protection.
  After an incident that a restraining order against her ex-boyfriend 
failed to prevent, the threat of a nonlethal device prevented any harm 
of Ms. Caetano. Yet, Massachusetts had previously outlawed the 
ownership of stun guns, and she was arrested.
  Massachusetts' highest court sided against the Supreme Court's Heller 
decision, which set clear standards for the Second Amendment. The 
Supreme Court Justices clearly saw the foolishness in the State court's 
decision and reversed it this week, reasserting that the right to bear 
arms ``extends to all instruments that constitute bearable arms, even 
those that were not in existence'' when our Nation was founded.
  This is a reminder that the rights of all Americans must be defended 
vigilantly by every generation. I commend the Supreme Court for its 
decision and Justice Alito for his concurring opinion that gives 
individuals in all States a necessary nonlethal option for protection 
against violence.

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