Flying Pig Alert: New Jersey Supreme Court Recognizes Second Amendment

New Jersey v. Montalvo (N.J. 2017):

The jury convicted Montalvo of unlawful possession of a weapon and acquitted him of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. Montalvo appealed, arguing that the conviction violated his Second Amendment right to bear arms and that the jury instructions were erroneous. The Appellate Division affirmed. We reverse because the jury instructions constitute plain error.

Montalvo was holding a machete inside his home when an angry neighbor confronted him at his door:

Self-defense is a potential defense to a possessory weapons offense. The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution states, “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” U.S. Const. amend. II. The Second Amendment “guarantee[s] the individual right to possess and carry weapons in case of confrontation,” District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570, 592, 128 S. Ct. 2783, 2797, 171 L. Ed. 2d 637, 657 (2008), and fully applies to the States, McDonald v. City of Chicago, 561 U.S. 742, 750, 130 S. Ct. 3020, 3026, 177 L. Ed. 2d 894, 903 (2010). It extends to “all instruments that constitute bearable arms.” Heller, supra, 554 U.S. at 582, 128 S. Ct. at 2792, 171 L. Ed. 2d at 651.

So far, only machetes seem protected, but I am sure this will lead to something good.  Either that, or the National Machete Association is stronger than I thought.