In Caetano v. Massachusetts, No. 14-10078, the Supreme Court, in a unanimous per curiam decision, reversed the decision of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts that a stun gun is not a “bearable arm” protected by the Second Amendment, District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008), and McDonald v. Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010). Ms. Caetano was given a stun gun by a friend to use for protection after an altercation with her abusive ex-boyfriend landed her in the hospital. Multiple restraining orders had proved unsuccessful in keeping the boyfriend away. The next time the boyfriend accosted her, she displayed the stun gun and he went away.
Possession of a stun gun is punishable in Massachusetts by imprisonment of 6 months to 2 1/2 years. Ms. Caetano raised a Second Amendment claim in the trial court, but it was rejected, and she was convicted. The …