- 1787- Bill of Rights (2nd amendment): secured us the "right to keep and bear arms."
- 1800’s- Reconstruction and Jim Crow Laws: after the civil war, southern states restricted guns by prohibiting cheaper guns to keep them from out of certain peoples hands.
- 1934- National Firearms Act: put taxes and regulations on fully automatic guns and certain firearms believed to be used by many criminals.
- 1938- Federal Firearms Act: required gun dealers to become licensed and keep records on all sold guns.
- 1939- United States v. Miller: the Supreme Court clarified that the second amendment applies to military arms and in this case could only regulate short barreled shotguns deemed unuseful to the military.
- 1968- Gun Control Act: put into effect after the assassination of J.F.K. and made it illegal to mail order long guns and for felons, mentally ill, and drug users to own guns.
- 1986- Hughes Amendment to the National Firearms Act: made it illegal to sell automatic firearms.
- 1990- Gun Control Act: made gun free school zones and put penalties into place for those carrying or discharging firearms on school grounds.
- 1993- Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act: started the 5 day waiting period and put background checks into place for anyone buying handguns. Also made the National Instant Background Check System (NICS).
- 1994- Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act: called the “assault weapons ban,” it banned semi-auto rifles based on appearance instead of functionality.
- 2008- District of Columbia v. Heller: took off the Washington D.C. handgun ban and upheld right to bear arms
- 2010- McDonald v. Chicago: took off Chicago's handgun ban because it was unconstitutional