HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 37

(By Delegates Rodighiero, Evans, Tomblin, R. Thompson, Hicks, Worrell, Phillips, Staggers, N. Brown and Wilson)

[Introduced January 27, 2020]

Affirming The Legislature’s commitment to the rights of West Virginia citizens under the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and Section 22 of Article III of the West Virginia Constitution.

Whereas, The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, adopted in 1791 as part of the Bill of Rights, protects the inalienable and individual right of the people to keep and bear arms; and

Whereas, The Supreme Court of the United States in District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008), affirmed an individual’s right to possess firearms, unconnected with service in a militia, for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home; and

Whereas, The Supreme Court of the United States in McDonald v. Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010), affirmed that the right of an individual to “keep and bear arms,” as protected under the Second Amendment, is incorporated by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and thereby made applicable to the states; and

Whereas, the Supreme Court of the United States in United States v. Miller, 307 U.S. 174 (1939), held that firearms that are part of ordinary military equipment, or with use that could contribute to the common defense, are protected by the Second Amendment; and
            Whereas, Section 22 of Article III of the West Virginia Constitution provides that a “person has the right to keep and bear arms for the defense of self, family, home and state, and for lawful hunting and recreational use”; and

Whereas, Section 10 of Article III of the West Virginia Constitution provides that no “person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, and the judgment of his peers”; and

Whereas, Section 6 of Article III of the West Virginia Constitution provides that the “rights of the citizens to be secure in their houses, persons, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated”; and

Whereas, Section 9 of Article III of the West Virginia Constitution provides that private property “shall not be taken or damaged for public use, without just compensation”; and

Whereas, The right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental individual right that shall not be infringed; and

Whereas, It is the desire of The Legislature to declare its support of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and to the provisions of the West Virginia Constitution which protect citizens’ inalienable and individual right to keep and bear arms; and

Whereas, The legislators each took an oath to support and defend the United States Constitution and the West Virginia Constitution; therefore, be it

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That The Legislature affirms its commitment to citizens’ rights under the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and Section 22 of Article III of the West Virginia Constitution; and further,

That The Legislature opposes any unconstitutional firearms law or any federal or state act, law, order, rule, or regulation, which restricts an individual’s constitutional right to keep and bear arms, firearm accessories, or ammunition; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates shall forward a copy of this resolution to the Governor, every county commission within the state of West Virginia, and the United States Congress.