Second Amendment Foundation

Last updated
Second Amendment Foundation
Established1974;50 years ago (1974)
Founder Alan M. Gottlieb
Type Gun rights advocacy group
91-6184167 (EIN) [1]
Legal status 501(c)(3) organization
Headquarters Bellevue, Washington, United States
Location
  • 12500 Northeast 10th Place
    Bellevue, WA 98005
Region
United States
Membership (2023)
720,000
President
 Massad Ayoob
Executive Vice President
Alan M. Gottlieb
Executive Director
Adam Kraut
9
AffiliationsCitizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA)
Budget (2019)
$4.3 million [2]
Revenue (2023)
Increase2.svg $9.08 million [3]
Expenses (2023)Increase Neutral.svg $7.82 million [3]
Staff16 (in 2011)
Website www.saf.org

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) is a United States nonprofit organization that supports gun rights. Founded in 1974 by Alan Gottlieb and headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, SAF publishes gun rights magazines and public education materials, funds conferences, provides media contacts, and has assumed a central role in sponsoring lawsuits. [4]

Contents

The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) is the advocacy affiliate of the SAF. As of January 2015, both groups reported having over 650,000 members. [5] [6]

In 2005, the Second Amendment Foundation and the National Rifle Association of America (NRA) successfully sued New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin and others to stop gun seizures in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. [7] On February 12, 2007, Ray Nagin and others were held in contempt of court for violating the consent order. [8] The case is National Rifle Association of America, Inc., et al. v. C. Ray Nagin et al. [9]

In 2005, SAF and others sued to stop the San Francisco gun ban. On June 13, 2006, San Francisco Superior Court Judge James Warren struck down the ban, saying local governments have no such authority under California law. The City appealed Judge Warren's ruling, but lost in a unanimous opinion from the three-judge panel in the Court of Appeal issued on January 9, 2008. The City then appealed to the California Supreme Court, which reached a unanimous decision on April 9, 2008, that rejected the city's appeal and upheld the lower courts' decision.

In 2006, a suit was filed in federal court against Washington state's North Central Regional Library District (NCRL). "The NCRL's policy of refusing to disable its Internet filters upon request is restricting the ability of speakers, content providers and patrons of the NCRL's public-library branches to access the contemporary marketplace of ideas" by using Internet filters on publicly available computer terminals to block access to constitutionally protected speech, including publications such as Women & Guns magazine, which is owned by SAF. It is claimed the library refuses to unblock such access even at the request of the plaintiffs. [10] Upon certification by the District Court, the Washington Supreme Court held that a public library may, consistent with the Washington State Constitution, filter Internet access for all patrons without being obliged to disable the filter to allow access to web sites containing constitutionally protected speech upon the request of an adult library patron. [11] Based on this ruling, the federal district court ruled in 2012 that the public library's policy, including not disabling an Internet filter at the request of an adult patron, was reasonable, was not constitutionally overbroad, and did not violate the First Amendment's content-based restrictions. [12]

In 2008, the Second Amendment Foundation and the NRA successfully sued Washington, forcing the state to restart issuing and renewing Alien Firearms Licenses to legal resident aliens. [13]

On June 26, 2008, following the ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller affirming an individual Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms by the Supreme Court of the United States, the Second Amendment Foundation filed a suit, known as McDonald v. Chicago , against the City of Chicago to overturn its handgun ban. [14] Alan Gura, who successfully argued Heller before the Supreme Court, was lead counsel in this case. On June 28, 2010, the Supreme Court held in McDonald that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution is incorporated by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and applies to the states. [15] In a noteworthy concurring opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas held that the application of the Second Amendment to the states was through the Fourteenth Amendment's Privileges or Immunities Clause.

Following the Heller decision in 2008 in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for private use, the Second Amendment Foundation partnered with Smith & Wesson to create a commemorative revolver. On the right side plate of the revolver, the scale of justice is depicted with the case name across the scale. The balance is in favor of the "Heller" name with the court date of "June 26, 2008" positioned across the top. Underneath the scale, the side plate reads "Second Amendment" and "The right to keep and bear arms" in white lettering. The revolver was presented to the six plaintiffs of the case. [16] [17]

On June 29, 2010, following the McDonald ruling by the Supreme Court that the Second Amendment is incorporated against the states, the Second Amendment Foundation, along with Grass Roots North Carolina and three North Carolina citizens, filed a federal suit [18] in North Carolina. The suit, known as Bateman vs. Perdue , seeks to prevent local officials and local governments from declaring states of emergency under which private citizens are prohibited from exercising their right to bear arms. [19] Alan Gura, who successfully argued Heller and McDonald before the Supreme Court, is lead counsel in this case.

In 2018, the Foundation joined in a lawsuit against Alameda County, which had passed an ordinance that prohibits gun stores from being located within 500 feet of a residential zone. [20] The plaintiffs won before a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court, but the decision was reversed by the full appeals court sitting en banc. The plaintiffs filed for a Writ of Certiorari seeking a hearing before the US Supreme Court. The Court rejected the request on May 14, 2017. [21]

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms logo.png

The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) is the sister organization [22] and advocacy affiliate of the Second Amendment Foundation. [23] As of January 2015, both groups reported having over 650,000 members. [5] [6] The CCRKBA was founded by Gottlieb in 1971, three years before he founded the SAF. The organization was formed to advocate the individualist interpretation of the Second Amendment by firearm enthusiasts who felt that the NRA was not taking a strong enough stand on gun control and gun rights. [24]

In his capacity as chair of the Citizens Committee For The Right To Keep And Bear Arms, Alan Gottlieb expressed his support for gun control contained in the Manchin-Toomey background check amendment. In a National Public Radio interview that aired April 16, 2013. NPR host Robert Siegel is quoted saying, "The background checks proposal that Ailsa mentioned is an amendment put forward by Democrat Joe Manchin and Republican Pat Toomey. It would expand background checks to include gun shows and Internet sales. Among gun rights activists, Alan Gottlieb is a figure of consequence. So his support of the Manchin-Toomey amendment is meaningful." [25]

Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership

Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership is a gun-rights organization of American physicians. It was founded in 1993 by Timothy Wheeler, now Director emeritus, as a project of the Claremont Institute; as of 2016, it was a project of the Second Amendment Foundation. [26]

Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership (DRGO) is a nationwide network of physicians and other health professionals who support the safe and lawful use of firearms. It also educates the public by searching and posting articles using science and medicine in dealing with firearm politics, proper use of firearms, and gun safety. It also publishes its own articles by DRGO members twice weekly. The editor of DRGO is Robert B. Young, MD; John Edeen, MD, is media liaison and Membership Director; Arthur Z. Przebinda, MD., is DRGO Project Director. Authors and Contributors [27] include Gary Mauser, PhD, and Miguel Faria, MD.

Publications

Radio

The Second Amendment Foundation and the CCRKBA own a group of business talk radio stations in the Pacific Northwest.

Stations

CallsignFreq. City Market
KBNP 1410 kHz Portland, OR Portland, OR
KGTK 920 kHz Olympia, WA Olympia, WA
KITZ 1400 kHz Silverdale, WA Seattle
KSBN 1230 kHz Spokane, WA Spokane, WA

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Second Amendment to the United States Constitution</span> 1791 amendment protecting the right to keep and bear arms

The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects the right to keep and bear arms. It was ratified on December 15, 1791, along with nine other articles of the Bill of Rights. In District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), the Supreme Court affirmed for the first time that the right belongs to individuals, for self-defense in the home, while also including, as dicta, that the right is not unlimited and does not preclude the existence of certain long-standing prohibitions such as those forbidding "the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill" or restrictions on "the carrying of dangerous and unusual weapons". In McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010) the Supreme Court ruled that state and local governments are limited to the same extent as the federal government from infringing upon this right. New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen (2022) assured the right to carry weapons in public spaces with reasonable exceptions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Rifle Association</span> American nonprofit organization

The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while continuing to teach firearm safety and competency. The organization also publishes several magazines and sponsors competitive marksmanship events. According to the NRA, it had nearly 5 million members as of December 2018, though that figure has not been independently confirmed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gun politics in the United States</span>

Gun politics in the United States is characterized by two primary opposing ideologies regarding private firearm ownership.

<i>Silveira v. Lockyer</i>

Silveira v. Lockyer, 312 F.3d 1052, is a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruling that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution did not guarantee individuals the right to bear arms. The case involved a challenge to the constitutionality of the Roberti-Roos Assault Weapons Control Act of 1989 (AWCA), California legislation that banned the manufacture, sale, transportation, or importation of specified semi-automatic firearms. The plaintiffs alleged that various provisions of the AWCA infringed upon their individual constitutionally-guaranteed right to keep and bear arms.

Gun laws in the United States regulate the sale, possession, and use of firearms and ammunition. State laws vary considerably, and are independent of existing federal firearms laws, although they are sometimes broader or more limited in scope than the federal laws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act</span> 2005 U.S. law limiting criminal liability

The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) is a U.S law, passed in 2005, that protects firearms manufacturers and dealers from being held liable when crimes have been committed with their products. Both arms manufacturers and dealers can still be held liable for damages resulting from defective products, breach of contract, criminal misconduct, and other actions for which they are directly responsible. However, they may be held liable for negligent entrustment if it is found that they had reason to believe a firearm was intended for use in a crime.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Gottlieb</span> American writer and political activist

Alan Merril Gottlieb is an American author, conservative political activist, gun rights advocate, and businessperson. Gottlieb has published 23 books.

In the United States, the right to keep and bear arms is modulated by a variety of state and federal statutes. These laws generally regulate the manufacture, trade, possession, transfer, record keeping, transport, and destruction of firearms, ammunition, and firearms accessories. They are enforced by state, local and the federal agencies which include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008), is a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States. It ruled that the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects an individual's right to keep and bear arms—unconnected with service in a militia—for traditionally lawful purposes such as self-defense within the home, and that the District of Columbia's handgun ban and requirement that lawfully owned rifles and shotguns be kept "unloaded and disassembled or bound by a trigger lock" violated this guarantee. It also stated that the right to bear arms is not unlimited and that certain restrictions on guns and gun ownership were permissible. It was the first Supreme Court case to decide whether the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep and bear arms for self-defense or whether the right was only intended for state militias.

McDonald v. City of Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010), was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States that found that the right of an individual to "keep and bear arms", as protected under the Second Amendment, is incorporated by the Fourteenth Amendment and is thereby enforceable against the states. The decision cleared up the uncertainty left in the wake of District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) as to the scope of gun rights in regard to the states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gun laws in Iowa</span>

Gun laws in Iowa regulate the sale, possession, and use of firearms and ammunition in the state of Iowa in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Association for Gun Rights</span> American gun group

The National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR) is a gun rights advocacy group in the United States. They maintain an affiliated PAC and a nonprofit legal foundation. Officially incorporated in Virginia on March 29, 2000, NAGR was founded by Dudley Brown as a national companion organization to Rocky Mountain Gun Owners. NAGR is a rival to the more moderate National Rifle Association of America (NRA) and considers itself to be a more "conservative alternative" to the NRA. The group spends most of its energy focused on lawmakers and moderates who are deemed too compromising on Second Amendment issues. This is achieved via direct mail, robocalls and low-cost television ads. The group has gained notoriety for its lobbying tactics and attack ads.

<i>Woollard v. Gallagher</i> Civil lawsuit

Woollard v. Sheridan, 863 F. Supp. 2d 462, reversed sub. nom., Woollard v Gallagher, 712 F.3d 865, was a civil lawsuit brought on behalf of Raymond Woollard, a resident of the State of Maryland, by the Second Amendment Foundation against Terrence Sheridan, Secretary of the Maryland State Police, and members of the Maryland Handgun Permit Review Board. Plaintiffs allege that the Defendants' refusal to grant a concealed carry permit renewal to Mr. Woollard on the basis that he "...ha[d] not demonstrated a good and substantial reason to wear, carry or transport a handgun as a reasonable precaution against apprehended danger in the State of Maryland" was a violation of Mr. Woollard's rights under the Second and Fourteenth Amendments, and therefore unconstitutional. The trial court found in favor of Mr. Woollard, However, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the trial court and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review that decision.

<i>Moore v. Madigan</i> Pair of court cases

Moore v. Madigan is the common name for a pair of cases decided in 2013 by the U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit, regarding the constitutionality of the State of Illinois' no-issue legislation and policy regarding the carry of concealed weapons. The plaintiffs, Michael Moore, Mary Shepard and the Second Amendment Foundation, sought an injunction against Illinois attorney general Lisa Madigan, Illinois Governor Patrick Quinn, and other named defendants, barring them from enforcing two key provisions of the Illinois Statutes prohibiting public possession of a firearm or other weapon.

Kachalsky v. Cacace is a case regarding the constitutionality of "may-issue" concealed carry laws. The plaintiffs, Alan Kachalsky, Christina Nikolov, and the Second Amendment Foundation, represented by Alan Gura, originally sought an injunction barring Susan Cacace, handgun licensing authority for co-Defendant Westchester County, New York, from enforcing a requirement of New York State law that applicants for handgun carry permits demonstrate "proper cause" for the issuance of a handgun license and subsequent carry of a handgun in public.

People v. Aguilar, 2 N.E.3d 321, was an Illinois Supreme Court case in which the Court held that the Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon (AUUF) statute violated the right to keep and bear arms as guaranteed by the Second Amendment. The Court stated that this was because the statute amounted to a wholesale statutory ban on the exercise of a personal right that was specifically named in and guaranteed by the United States Constitution, as construed by the United States Supreme Court. A conviction for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm (UPF) was proper because the possession of handguns by minors was conduct that fell outside the scope of the Second Amendment's protection.

In the United States, the right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental right protected by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, part of the Bill of Rights, and by the constitutions of most U.S. states. The Second Amendment declares:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

<i>Peruta v. San Diego County</i>

Peruta v. San Diego, 824 F.3d 919, was a decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit pertaining to the legality of San Diego County's restrictive policy regarding requiring documentation of "good cause" that "distinguish[es] the applicant from the mainstream and places the applicant in harm's way" before issuing a concealed carry permit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Korwin</span>

Alan Korwin is an American writer, author and civil- and political-rights activist whose work serves the business, legal, news and firearms industries. In 1988, Korwin founded Bloomfield Press, which has grown into the largest publisher and distributor of gun-law books in the nation. It is built around books he has written on the subject, including The Arizona Gun Owner's Guide, Your First Gun, After You Shoot, and the unabridged federal guides Gun Laws of America and Supreme Court Gun Cases.

References

  1. ↑ Roberts, Andrea Suozzo, Alec Glassford, Ash Ngu, Brandon (2013-05-09). "Second Amendment Foundation - Nonprofit Explorer". ProPublica. Retrieved 2024-11-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ↑ "2019 Financial Audit Report" (PDF).
  3. 1 2 Roberts, Andrea Suozzo, Alec Glassford, Ash Ngu, Brandon (2013-05-09). "Second Amendment Foundation, Full Filing - Nonprofit Explorer". ProPublica. Retrieved 2024-11-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ↑ Godwin, Marcia L. (2012). "Second Amendment Foundation". In Carter, Gregg Lee (ed.). Guns in American Society: A - L. Guns in American Society. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. ISBN   9781576072684 . Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  5. 1 2 "Second Amendment Foundation Launches Firearms Training Division" (Press release). Bellevue, Washington: Second Amendment Foundation. PR Newswire. January 5, 2015. Archived from the original on January 9, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  6. 1 2 "CCRKBA Throws Its Support Behind Bill To Repeal I-594" (Press release). Bellevue, Washington: Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. PR Newswire. January 26, 2015. Archived from the original on February 5, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  7. ↑ NRA and SAF. "Complaint for Declarative and Injunctive Relief" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on May 17, 2008. Retrieved September 15, 2008.
  8. ↑ Carl J. Barbier, U.S. District Judge (February 12, 2007). "Order And Reasons" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 26, 2007.
  9. ↑ "Transcript of NRA video interviews". CNN Transcripts. Cable News Network. July 2, 2008. Archived from the original on February 21, 2009. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  10. ↑ SAF (November 16, 2006). "SAF Sues Library System Over Internet Censorship of Gun Websites".
  11. ↑ "Washington State Supreme Court Blog" (PDF).
  12. ↑ "scribd.com Documentation of District Court Ruling".
  13. ↑ NRA and SAF. "Preliminary Injunction" (PDF). Retrieved June 29, 2010.
  14. ↑ SAF (June 26, 2007). "Complaint" (PDF).
  15. ↑ SCOTUS (June 28, 2010). "McDonald Opinion" (PDF).
  16. ↑ Smith & Wesson (July 21, 2008). "Second Amendment Foundation and Smith & Wesson Partner on Commemorative Revolver: Engraved Model 442 Will Recognize District of Columbia vs. Heller Decision" (PDF).
  17. ↑ Smith & Wesson (January 10, 2010). "Archived Web Page for Revolver".
  18. ↑ Alan Gura (June 28, 2010). "Complaint, Bateman vs. Perdue".
  19. ↑ SAF (June 29, 2010). "SAF Sues to Overturn North Carolina's 'Emergency Powers' Gun Bans".
  20. ↑ PR Newswire. "SCOTUS Review Sought in Challenge of Alameda County Gun Store Ban". CISION. PR Newswire. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  21. ↑ "California Cities Are Free to Regulate Gun Stores Out of Existence". Reason. 15 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  22. ↑ "CCRKBA: Survey Affirms More Americans Support Gun Rights". Fairfield Sun Times . May 11, 2021. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
  23. ↑ Levine, Maryianne; Arkin, James (August 18, 2019). "Rival gun groups look to fill the NRA's void". Politico . Guns. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
  24. ↑ Spitzer, Robert J. (2001). The Right to Bear Arms: Rights and Liberties Under the Law . Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. p.  75. ISBN   9781576073476 . Retrieved February 4, 2015.
  25. ↑ Siegel, Robert (April 16, 2013). "Gun Rights Activist Endorses Expanded Background Checks". NPR. Retrieved November 15, 2024.{{cite web}}: Check |archive-url= value (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  26. ↑ "About". Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership. Archived from the original on August 9, 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  27. ↑ DRGO. "Authors & contributors". Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership. SAF. Retrieved May 10, 2019.


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