A large rally gathered outside the Supreme Court Tuesday as justices heard arguments in a case pertaining to a 1994 law aimed at keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers.
An appeals court in the 5th Circuit overturned the law, citing another recent decision by the high court as it pertains to gun rights. Now, the nation’s highest court is hearing arguments over the legislation in U.S. v. Rahimi.
Donna Berdych, of Towson, Maryland, was among those standing near the front of the rally, holding a sign that said her daughter had been shot and killed by a domestic abuser. She said her daughter’s abuser went to a gun show to illegally buy the gun in order to avoid a background check. This case was personal to her.
“And it should be personal to everybody,” she said near the steps to the Supreme Court. “Any of us can have interactions with people who have guns and whose behavior has been erratic.”
Berdych said she’s worried that those who have a history of violent behavior will get their hands on weapons. It’s a concern shared with her neighbor, Andrea Koller, who is herself a shooting survivor.
“In 2016, my daughter was held hostage in our car by a carjacker and when I came to the car, he shot me in the chest,” said Koller. She said that shooting happened in New York City.
Normally, high-profile cases tend to draw dueling rallies in front of the Supreme Court, but in this instance, there was no one who seemed to be arguing in favor of upholding the 5th Circuit verdict.
“Because it’s common sense,” Koller said. “The majority of the population is with us.”
Prominent lawmakers who have also called for stricter gun laws also turned up at the rally.
“We have the American public on our side,” said Connecticut Sen. Christopher Murphy. “When you can’t get the American public on your side, you try to get five people on your side here.
He said if the court upholds the case, it would essentially put the nine justices on the court in charge of “micromanaging our nation’s gun laws. It’ll be the nine supreme court justices that on a case-by-case basis make a decision as to who can have a gun, who can’t have a gun.”
“Our country has already endured too many tragedies and lost too many loved ones to violence,” said Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
A former lawmaker, Arizona’s Gabrielle Giffords, also made a brief appearance. Giffords is also a gun violence survivor, after someone shot her during an event she was hosting in Arizona in 2011. The impact still causes her to sometimes slur her speech.
“Stopping gun violence takes courage,” Giffords said. “The courage to do what’s right.
“We must never stop fighting,” she told the rally goers. “Fight, fight, fight. Be bold. Be courageous. The nation is counting on you.”
A decision is likely to come sometime next year.
