Abstract
In 1982 the Utah Supreme Court interpreted the second amendment to the United States Constitution' as providing a "collective' rather than an "individual"3 right to bear arms. Relying on one of the few United States Supreme Court decisions interpreting the second amendment, the Utah court justified a state statute that prohibited aliens from possessing firearms as a valid exercise of state police power. By concluding that the second amendment provides a collective right to bear arms, the court opened the door for a similar interpretation of article I section 6 of the Utah Constitution, which at that time read, "The people have the right to bear arms for their security and defense, but the Legislature may regulate the exercise of this right by law."
Recommended Citation
Hunt, M. Truman
(1986)
"The Individual Right to Bear Arms: An IllusoryPublic Pacifier?,"
Utah Law Review: Vol. 1986:
No.
4, Article 4.
Available at:
https://dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol1986/iss4/4