Wolford v. Lopez · ¶155

Bruen then derived its first step from the “test . . . set forth in Heller.” 597 U. S., at 26. Heller indicated that it is appropriate to consider history in ascertaining the scope of the Second Amendment right—what Bruen later adopted as step one. 554 U. S., at 592. And step one is supposed to have a function: It operates as a check to make sure that Second Amendment challengers demonstrate that the Amendment actually implicates their desired conduct. Bruen, 597 U. S., at 32 (analyzing whether the “plain text of the Second Amendment protects [the] proposed course of conduct”). In so doing, Bruen’s first step requires “defining the character of the right,” which, again, Heller instructs involves consideration of history. Bruen, 597 U. S., at 22. Although Bruen did not conduct a historical analysis itself, that was because Bruen’s step-one “plain text” determination was obvious after…

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