When it comes to gun laws in Washington, local officials know that the world or, at least, the throng of national advocates on all sides of the debate is watching.
The city’s gun laws have been part of the national conversation surrounding the Second Amendment since 2008, when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the city’s handgun ban in District of Columbia v. Heller. With that in mind, D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) is backing legislation that lawyers say illustrates the line that councilmembers now walk between respecting gun owners’ rights and fighting crime.
