VI – Self-Defense – Page 36

Important Judicial Decisions Regarding Self-Defense Law

The following legal decisions concern the law of self-defense. Some of the rulings are final and others are not. They’re presented here, along with salient excerpts, to be read for their excellent judicial logic about the absolute civil right of armed self-defense as established by the framers of the US Constitution.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, USA State Constitutions Providing for Armed Self-Defense ]

US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit ruling: Samuel Ortega v. Michelle Lujan Grisham (August 19, 2025) by US Circuit Judge Timothy Tymkovich (pdf).

This ruling says New Mexico’s 7-day waiting period law for most gun sales “is likely an unconstitutional burden on the Second Amendment rights of its citizens.”

“Cooling-off periods infringe on the Second Amendment by preventing the lawful acquisition of firearms. Cooling-off periods do not fit into any historically grounded exceptions to the right to keep and bear arms, and burden conduct within the Second Amendment’s scope.”

“Common sense dictates that the right to bear arms requires a right to acquire arms, just as the right to free press necessarily includes the right to acquire a printing press, or the right to freely practice religion necessarily rests on a right to acquire a sacred text. Legal interpretation follows that common sense.”

“As paper or a computer is a necessary predicate to the right to print, or the ability to own property is a necessary predicate of the right to just compensation for a taking—acquiring, purchasing, and possessing firearms is a necessary predicate to keeping and bearing them.”

“The burden imposed by a cooling-off period is brought into sharper focus when considered in the context of other constitutional rights. A carte blanche one-week cooling-off period to publish news stories? Unconstitutional….Temporary closures of churches during COVID-19? Unconstitutional….The Second Amendment is no different.”

“In short, regardless of paternalistic intent, waiting periods burden the right to keep and bear arms.” *

Dry Fire and Self-Defense Apps

General Apps

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Dry Fire Apps

Shot Timer Apps

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By semperverus
Posted on 05/02/202011/21/2023
2 Comments on Dry Fire and Self-Defense Apps

Self-Defense & Church Security Training Directory

Personal Training Resources | Church Security Training Resources

The knowledge you acquire when you learn how to drive a car translates into safety and confidence every time you use the car. The same is true with firearms and their use in self-defense. Just as cars are dangerous machines when driven irresponsibly, so, too, are firearms when handled without the proper care, attention, and education they deserve.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, The 4 Basic Rules of Gun Safety ]

A gun is only as good as the training of its owner. Firearm triggers don’t pull themselves; they require someone to interfere with the physics law of inertia: if a body is at rest, it will remain at rest unless it’s acted upon by a force. That force (us) should be responsibly trained in basic—as well as advanced—gun safety rules, and self-defense principles and law. The following resources offer that training.

When practicing drawing from a holster or generally demonstrating gun handling, you may want to use inert, detailed, and realistic replicas of actual weapons referred to as “Firearm Simulators” or “blueguns” made with strong, steel-reinforced, impact-resistant polyurethane. Ring’s Manufacturing is known for crafting detailed and accurate blueguns. See its extensive line of products here.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Directory of Firearm Podcasts & Video Channels ]

The 4 Basic Rules of Gun Safety

Col. Jeff Cooper (1920–2006) was a US Marine, the creator of the modern technique of handgun shooting, and an expert on the use and history of small arms. He introduced the concept of the mental alertness color code which indicates the degree of peril a person is willing to act upon and which facilitates a person to move from one level of mindset to another (situational awareness) to enable the person to properly handle a given situation.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Checklist: Matters to Consider When Deciding on a Handgun ]

As a way of encouraging universal firearm safety, Col. Cooper also advocated a simple 4-point set of rules anyone can understand: