Judge Richard Posner, writing for the majority on a Seventh Circuit panel, struck down Illinois’ ban on firearms possession outside the home as unconstitutional under the 2nd Amendment. The decision stays its impact for 180 days to allow the Illinois’ legislature time to “fix” the law.The opinion can be downloaded here.Much to read with the opinion largely based on historical analysis of carriage of firearms in the 18th century and on empirical studies about gun related crimes in America.We are disinclined to engage in another round of historical analysis to determine whether eighteenth-century America understood the Second Amendment to include a right to bear guns outside the home. The Supreme Court has decided that the amendment confers a right to bear arms for self-defense, which is as important outside the home as inside. The theoretical and empirical evidence (which overall is inconclusive) is consistent with concluding that a right to carry firearms in public may promote self-defense. Illinois had to provide us with more than merely a rational basis for believing that its uniquely sweeping ban is justified by an increase in public safety. It has failed to meet this burden. The Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Second Amendment therefore compels us to reverse the decisions in the two cases before us and remandStay tuned.