Everyone read my man @jacobdcharles.bsky.social

“these things were very controversial at the onset, but I think Minnesota did a pretty good job on this statute,” said Kandiyohi County Sheriff Eric Tollefson ... “Everyone’s fear was that family members and estranged spouses would run rampant and take people’s guns away, but that’s not happening.”

The Women’s Law Student Association organized such a great 5k this morning! Happy to join my students and our very tall Dean. All proceeds went to Standpoint, a wonderful org that supports survivors of domestic violence, an issue always in my ♥️

Jillian and James‘s writing is always evidence based and cuts to the heart of the issue. “What makes a difference is reducing access to the weapons that turn suicidal intent into mass casualties and building systems to intervene earlier.” www.minnpost.com/community-vo...

I tell my students they need to fit in self-care time because our work is a marathon. OrangeTheory is my self care and I improved my 12 minute benchmark this week. I still have many bad runs because it’s running and I’m me but it’s still nice to see progress.

Months after surviving an assassination attempt, the Hoffman family issued a strong statement condemning the horrific political violence against Charlie Kirk and urging all leaders not to accept this as our reality.

Minnesota is still mourning Fletcher and Harper. And praying for Lydia and kids who laid their bodies on other kids to protect them from bullets two weeks ago. And crying because friends Melissa and Mark Hortman are gone. There is nothing I can say about yesterday other than what Ruth said.

Hey look, here is a proposed gun regulation I think is unconstitutional and morally wrong.

James and Jillian's work is excellent and I use their swiss cheese model to teach my students about GVP. They note the "crisis demands layered solutions", necessarily including "sensible gun policies that reduce the firepower available to those intent on harm." www.startribune.com/mental-healt...

Today on Minnesota Now: Megan Walsh, the director of the Gun Violence Prevention Clinic at the University of Minnesota Law School, joins host Nina Moini after Twin Cities-area mayors gathered Tuesday at the Capitol to call for more authority to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

"Unless your argument begins and ends with one goal — fewer dead children — you’ve missed the only point that matters." www.startribune.com/annunciation...

Today’s 10th Circuit opinion also uses test of whether a weapon is in common use for self-defense as the benchmark to determine if a weapon gets any Second Amendment protection, the connection I discuss in my commentary last week. www.ca10.uscourts.gov/sites/ca10/f...

About a year ago, I wrote this op-ed in @newrepublic.com about a pretty wild district court decision holding that the federal machine gun ban violates the Second Amendment. Today, the Tenth Circuit correctly reversed: www.ca10.uscourts.gov/sites/ca10/f.... newrepublic.com/article/1853...

My commentary on the constitutionality of assault weapons bans in the Star Tribune. www.startribune.com/minneapolis-...

Even though I do this work every day, turns out it is a lot harder to speak articulately about gun violence after a school shooting two miles from my house that took place while I was dropping my daughter off for her first day of kindergarten. Devastating day. Tomorrow back to work.

School shootings feel different when it’s in your own neighborhood. It’s okay to not be okay, fellow Minneapolis residents. Community vigil tonight at 8:00pm in Lynnhurst Park.

Big decision in the MN AG suit against Glock yesterday, in which Judge Sande denied Glock’s motion to dismiss in full. The Clinic looks forward to digging into discovery as the case proceeds. www.fox9.com/news/glock-l...

NEW: 10th Cir declares that New Mexico’s 7 day waiting period for gun purchases violates the Second Amendment. Evidence shows such laws have a marked effect on firearm suicides, saving untold lives, but no matter — Bruen means history is all that counts. www.ca10.uscourts.gov/sites/ca10/f...

Not bad for my first one-mile test since high school 🏃🏻‍♀️

The Clinic won a case in Mille Lacs County this week where the Court held the Second Amendment does not protect brass knuckles. Building on language in the Clinic's COA win in Gaal, the court adopted our proposed approach to determine what arms are protected under 2A and upheld MN's ban.

1/ NEW: Following similar rulings in Iowa, WA, and (especially) MA, a NH Superior Court Judge has ruled that New Hampshire's state constitutional ban on "cruel or unusual punishment" prohibits all life without parole sentences for youth under age 18: state-law-research.org/wp-content/u...

The Minnesota Court of Appeals issued its second precedential post-Bruen case today on a Second Amendment challenge. It upheld the Minnesota law prohibiting possession of firearms without serial numbers, as applied to a defendant with a privately made firearm. mncourts.gov/_media/migra...

1) We need more Second Amendment courses in law schools; 2) you can teach it with this casebook; 3) the casebook is fantastic, my students have raved about early versions for the past two years. Congrats and big thanks to Joseph, Jake, Jody, and Darrell!

We had a traumatic shooting in Minneapolis this week by a brother who killed his sister, injured his mother, then took his own life. Domestic violence doesn’t always look the way you might think. But often it involves a shooter who is experiencing suicidal ideation. kstp.com/kstp-news/to...

Please share: excellent history Postdoc opportunity at Wesleyan's Center for the Study of Guns & Society. Post involves archival research on 18th and 19th century firearms use & laws; work on databases, reports, and papers; & thinking and writing around wonderful people doing important work.

While we continue to mourn the loss of Melissa and Mark Hortman, it is important to remember and address the legal framework that allows easy access to firearms, which facilitates political gun violence. Perspective from the always insightful @erinzamoff.bsky.social.

This piece from @erinzamoff.bsky.social is a must-read. Political violence is escalating, and unfettered access to guns is fueling it. If we want to protect democracy, we have to confront both. #MN

New Clinic win: a second Washington County judge upheld MN’s ghost gun prohibition against constitutional challenges based on the Second Amendment and vagueness. Will Roberts, Arielle Hugel, and Callan Showers (all ‘25) led the briefing. A MN SC decision on vagueness is still pending.

Each prosecution now seems to require a mini-trial about the character of the accused, asking whether they are likely to pose such a danger. Although phrased in terms of what a trial court should ask, the proof of danger risk seems to be now an element in the govt's case in chief.

NEW: The 3rd Cir (Bibas, J.) concludes that the 2nd Am doesn't invalidate the federal law barring unlawful drug users from having guns, so long as it's only applied to those who "pose a special danger of misusing firearms because they frequently use drugs." www.documentcloud.org/documents/25...

#GVP #2A #PLCAA Here's the Second Circuit's opinion from today ruling that the gun industry CAN be held liable under NY's state laws. Great news ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions/is...

And … if you just realized you need a mental health CLE credit, here is a free webinar on July 30 at noon by Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers: us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

This was a really interesting, free, on demand MN CLE in case there are others at the end of the alphabet trying to get their last CLE hours done. m.youtube.com/watch?v=RQk7...

My summer student directors Solomon Park (‘26) and Lola Brown (‘25) appeared in Anoka County today in our case defending Minnesota’s prohibition on machine guns, and Defendant withdrew his 2A challenge. The GVP Clinic interventions team wrote a great brief before the end of the school year.

Doing a final recruitment push to work with teenagers in New Jersey and learn about their exposure to gun violence on and off social media. Total compensation is up to $200 - please share with your networks!

An 11 year old Minnesotan was shot to death in a park today.

MN friends, join me at tomorrow’s vigil in memory of Melissa and Mark. No signs will be permitted. Please bring a candle.

Still recruiting for our study on the ripples of #gunviolence! Are you 18+? Have you experienced firearm violence in the U.S.? Click here to learn more: forms.office.com/e/7HphbRnfQJ

Please read and share this statement from Sophie and Colin Hortman, children of Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark. (via WCCO reporter Caroline Cummings on X)

Check out my blog post @statecourtreport.bsky.social on a new gun decision from the Georgia Supreme Court that asks, in part, what happens to original meaning when state constitutional language is readopted over time... statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...

I don’t have a lot of words right now, but offer humble thanks to Speaker Hortman for her service and leadership. Love to Sen. Hoffman and both of their families, and to our other legislators. We will keep fighting to prevent gun violence and hate.

Leader Hortman was a tireless advocate for all Minnesotans. She championed the 2024 ERPO Law and many public safety laws. It is tragic that Melissa and Mark Hortman are, like too many Americans, victims of gun violence. #mnleg

I wore orange today at OrangeTheoryFitness (but forgot to take a photo). I wear orange to remember the lives we have lost to gun violence and to prevent others from having to know the pain of such a loss. And I litigate every day because gun laws save lives. Miss you, Jim 🧡 #wearorange #runorange

Cert denied in DC high capacity magazine case in odd Friday evening orders list. a felon in possession of a firearm 2A case denied and another GVR'd as well. www.supremecourt.gov/search.aspx?...

Another court calling out the challenger’s failure to obtain experts or submit expert reports in a 2A case, expressly stating his “challenge falters for want of an adequate record.” Plaintiffs in 2A civil challenges often opt not to retain experts for these cases.

SCOTUS Gun Watch - Week of 6/2/25 firearmslaw.duke.edu/2025/06/scot...

Pretty big deal—the Supreme Court denies review of lower court cases rejecting Second Amendment challenges to Assault Weapon Bans. But Kavanaugh signals that SCOTUS review is coming “in a term or two.” www.supremecourt.gov/orders/court...

Big cert denial from the Supreme Court on second Amendment challenges to assault weapon and large capacity magazine prohibitions. www.supremecourt.gov/orders/court...

I haven’t had a lot of time here lately, so this is tardy, but this was a special group of teachers and colleagues who won our teaching awards this year. Congrats! ❤️

Jake’s excellent piece on Second Amendment Ancillary Rights, informed by how we treat rights protected by other Amendments. I found his categorization of ancillary rights particularly helpful.