Sign-In
Cart
To Trust the People with Arms: The Supreme Court and the Second Amendment
Paperback
ISBN13: 9780700643691
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
Published: Oct 20 2026
Pages: 368
Weight: 1.11
Height: 0.78 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
Winner: Thomas M. Cooley Book Prize
In 2007, for the first time in nearly seventy years, the Supreme Court decided to hear a case involving the Second Amendment. The resulting decision in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) was the first time the Court declared a firearms restriction to be unconstitutional on the basis of the Second Amendment. It was followed two years later by a similar decision in McDonald v. City of Chicago, and in 2022, the Court further expanded its support for Second Amendment rights in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen--a decision whose far-reaching implications are still being unraveled.
To Trust the People with Arms explores the remarkable and complex legal history of how the right to bear arms was widely accepted during the nation's founding, was near extinction in the late twentieth century, and is now experiencing a rebirth in the Supreme Court in the twenty-first century.
Robert J. Cottrol and Brannon P. Denning link the right to bear arms with other major themes in American history. Prompted by the eighteenth-century belief that arms played a vital role in preserving the liberties of the citizen, the Second Amendment met many challenges in the nation's history. Among the most acute of these were racism, racial violence, and the extension of the right to bear arms to African Americans and other marginalized groups. The development of modern firearms and twentieth-century urbanization also challenged traditional notions concerning the value of an armed population. Cottrol and Denning make a particularly important contribution linking the nation's participation in the wars of the twentieth century and the strengthening of American gun culture. Most of all, they give a nuanced and sophisticated legal history that engages legal realism, different varieties of originalism, and the role of chance and accident in history.
To Trust the People with Arms integrates history, politics, and law in an interdisciplinary way to illustrate the roles that guns and the right to keep and bear arms have played in American history, culture, and law.
1 different editions
Also available
To Trust the People with Arms: The Supreme Court and the Second Amendment
Cottrol, Robert J.
Denning, Brannon P.
Hardcover
Also from
Cottrol, Robert J.
To Trust the People with Arms: The Supreme Court and the Second Amendment
Cottrol, Robert J.
Denning, Brannon P.
Hardcover
The Long, Lingering Shadow: Slavery, Race, and Law in the American Hemisphere
Cottrol, Robert J.
Hardcover
The Long, Lingering Shadow: Slavery, Race, and Law in the American Hemisphere
Cottrol, Robert J.
Paperback
Also in
General Law
Before All Is Said and Done: Practical Advice on Living and Dying Well
Miles, Pat
Watson, Suzanne
Hardcover
With Liberty and Justice for Some: How the Law Is Used to Destroy Equality and Protect the Powerful
Greenwald, Glenn
Hardcover
Boy with a Knife: A Story of Murder, Remorse, and a Prisoner's Fight for Justice
Trounstine, Jean
Paperback
The U.S. Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern Reader
Murray, Melissa
Hardcover
Department of Fate: The Promise, the Power, and the Collapse of America's Most Consequential Institution
Maddow, Rachel
Hardcover
So Ordered: An Originalist's View of the Constitution, the Court, and Our Country
Alito, Samuel A., Jr.
Hardcover
Last Branch Standing: A Potentially Surprising, Occasionally Witty Journey Inside Today's Supreme Court
Isgur, Sarah
Hardcover
Unreasonable Women: Three Stories of Violence, Imprisonment, and Extraordinary Survival
Van Der Leun, Justine
Hardcover
Discovering the Club: Piecing Together the Puzzling Network of Parental Pimping, Ritualistic Abuse, and Sex Trafficking
Clack, Cynthia L.
Paperback
Supremacy: How Rule by the Court Replaced Government by the People
Bowie, Nikolas
Renan, Daphna
Hardcover
North Carolina Notary Public Manual, 2016
Secretary of State
Secretary of State, Nc Department
North Carolina Department of the
Hardcover
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure; 2026 Edition: With Statutory Supplement
Michigan Legal Publishing Ltd
Paperback
Nolo's Guide to Social Security Disability: Getting & Keeping Your Benefits
Morton III, David A.
Paperback
Social Security, Medicare & Government Pensions: Get the Most Out of Your Retirement and Medical Benefits
Matthews, Joseph
Paperback
The Price of Mercy: Unfair Trials, a Violent System, and a Public Defender's Search for Justice in America
Galvin Almanza, Emily
Hardcover
Our Minds Were Always Free: A History of How Black Brilliance Was Exploited--And the Fight to Retake Control
Davis, Lisa E.
Hardcover
Five Bullets: The Story of Bernie Goetz, New York's Explosive '80s, and the Subway Vigilante Trial That Divided the Nation
Williams, Elliot
Hardcover
The Water Remembers: My Indigenous Family's Fight to Save a River and a Way of Life
Cordalis, Amy Bowers
Hardcover
Searching for Jane Crow: Black Women and Mass Incarceration in America from the Auction Block to the Cell Block
Leflouria, Talitha L.
Hardcover
Captain's Dinner: A Shipwreck, an Act of Cannibalism, and a Murder Trial That Changed Legal History
Cohen, Adam
Hardcover
The Criminal Law Handbook: Know Your Rights, Survive the System
Berman, Sara J.
Bergman, Paul
Paperback
One in Five: Why Child Sexual Abuse Is Our Biggest Public Health Crisis--And What We Can Do to Stop It
Letourneau, Elizabeth J.
Malone, Luke
Hardcover
Your Data Will Be Used Against You: Policing in the Age of Self-Surveillance
Ferguson, Andrew Guthrie
Hardcover
Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised in Brief, 3rd Edition
Robert, Henry M., III
Honemann, Daniel H.
Balch, Thomas J.
Paperback
Revenge for the Sixties: Sam Alito and the Triumph of the Conservative Legal Movement
Canellos, Peter S.
Hardcover
Medical Terminology Made Simple: Easily Learn, Memorize, and Pronounce Medical Terms
Temple, John, MD
Paperback
Oops...That's Illegal!: A Handbook for the Wildly Curious (and the Accidental Outlaw)
Mandell, Mike
Hardcover
The Public Domain: Find and Use Free Content for Your Website, Book, App, Music, Video, Art, and More
Secor, Glen
Paperback
The Pain Brokers: How Con Men, Call Centers, and Rogue Doctors Fuel America's Lawsuit Factory
Chamblee Burch, Elizabeth
Hardcover
Getting Permission: Using & Licensing Copyright-Protected Materials Online & Off
Stim, Richard
Paperback
When Companies Run the Courts: How Forced Arbitration Became America's Secret Justice System
Ballou, Brendan
Hardcover
The Trustee's Legal Companion: A Step-By-Step Guide to Administering a Living Trust
Zolla, Carol Elias
Buckley, Shaila
Hanks, Liza
Paperback
Pink Crime: Fighting Against the Criminalization of Motherhood, Pregnancy, and Queer Identity
Beety, Valena
Hardcover
Living Trusts for Everyone: Why a Will Is Not the Way to Avoid Probate, Protect Heirs, and Settle Estates (Second Edition)
Sharp, Ronald Farrington
Paperback
Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes
Litman, Leah
Paperback
The Constitution Cannot Save Us: Why We Can No Longer Rely on Our Founding Document
Seidman, Louis Michael
Hardcover
Federal Rules of Evidence; 2026 Edition (Casebook Supplement): With Advisory Committee notes, Rule 502 explanatory note, internal cross-references, qu
Michigan Legal Publishing Ltd
Paperback
Dig Me a Grave: The Inside Story of the Serial Killer Who Seduced the South
Harpootlian, Richard A.
Assael, Shaun
Hardcover
The U.S. Constitution and Other Writings (Deluxe Leatherbound Edition)
Editors of Canterbury Classics
Hardcover
Federal Rules of Evidence; 2026 Edition: With Internal Cross-References
Michigan Legal Publishing Ltd
Paperback
J.K. Lasser's Small Business Taxes 2027: Your Complete Guide to a Better Bottom Line
Weltman, Barbara
Paperback
Is the Government Legally Killing Us?: Is the Evidence Obvious? How Fear of Death and the Illusion of Freedom Turn Us Into Accomplices to Evil
(Scott Schara), Grace's Dad
Paperback
The Constitution of the United States of America: The Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights
Founding Fathers
Paperback
Bone Valley: A True Story of Injustice and Redemption in the Heart of Florida
King, Gilbert
Hardcover
Represent Yourself in Court: Prepare & Try a Winning Civil Case
Bergman, Paul
Berman, Sara J.
Paperback
No Loose Ends: The Smart & Slightly Morbid Guide to Estate Planning & End-Of-Life Tasks
Zuckerman, Adam
Hardcover
The Cases That Haunt Us: From Jack the Ripper to JonBenet Ramsey, the Fbi's Legendary Mindhunter Sheds Light on the Mysteries That Won't Go Away
Olshaker, Mark
Douglas, John
Paperback
Understanding Living Trusts(R): How You Can Avoid Probate, Keep Control, Save Taxes, and Enjoy Peace of Mind
Schumacher, Vickie
Paperback
Iras, 401(k)S & Other Retirement Plans: Strategies for Taking Your Money Out
Slesnick, Twila
Shea, Tracy
Paperback
Stitching Freedom: A True Story of Injustice, Defiance, and Hope in Angola Prison
Tyler, Gary
Hardcover
Redemption: Faith, Justice, and Sisterhood on Death Row (Large Print Edition)
Wright, Lawrence
Paperback
The Presidential Pardon: The Short Clause with a Long, Troubled History
Prakash, Saikrishna Bangalore
Hardcover
The Federalist: A Commentary on the Constitution of the United States
Jay, John
Hamilton, Alexander
Madison, James
Paperback
Terrible Stuff Damaging Everybody: The True Story of Lies and Libel in Dominion V. Fox
Rosenberg, Ian
Hardcover
55 Successful Harvard Law School Application Essays, 2nd Edition: With Analysis by the Staff of the Harvard Crimson
Staff of the Harvard Crimson
Paperback
Why We Can't Have Nice Things: How Legal Reformers Accidentally Broke America
Bagley, Nicholas
Hardcover
38 Londres Street: On Impunity, Pinochet in England, and a Nazi in Patagonia
Sands, Philippe
Hardcover
Until the Last Yoke Is Broken: The Constitutional Vision of Frederick Douglass
Rebeiro, Bradley N.
Hardcover
Every Californian's Guide to Estate Planning: Wills, Trust & Everything Else
Hanks, Liza W.
Paperback
Little Book of Restorative Justice & Community: Reclaiming Connection and Responsibility for Our Neighbors
Morneau, Caitlin
Wilson, Sheryl
Paperback
The Only Living Trusts Estate Planning Guide: Protect Your Assets, Avoid Probate, Slash Taxes and Secure Your Heirs' Future.
Sterling, Thayer
Paperback
Fireproof: A Five-Step Model to Take Your Law Firm from Unpredictable to Wildly Profitable
Morse, Mike
Nachazel, John
Hardcover
Beyond the Body Farm: A Legendary Bone Detective Explores Murders, Mysteries, and the Revolution in Forensic Science
Jefferson, Jon
Bass, Bill
Paperback
Hitler's American Model: The United States and the Making of Nazi Race Law
Whitman, James Q.
Paperback
Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes
Litman, Leah
Hardcover
Contempt of Court: The Turn-Of-The-Century Lynching That Launched a Hundred Years of Federalism
Curriden, Mark
Phillips, Leroy
Paperback
Special Needs Trusts: Protect Your Child's Financial Future
Urbatsch, Kevin
Farinas Jones, Jessica
Paperback
The U.S. Constitution - Anti-Federalist Edition
Convention, Constitutional
Adams, Samuel
Henry, Patrick
Paperback