The right to bear nunchucks

Now this would make an interesting Supreme Court case. The prestigious law firm of Kirkland and Ellis has appealed to the Supreme Court a case to incorporate the Second Amendment to the states in a case concerning the right of a citizen to possess the weapon of choice for ninjas, nunchucks.

Here is the homepage of the man bringing the lawsuit against a conviction he received for possessing a nunchaku.

Welcome to the new1 homepage for Maloney v. Cuomo, the ongoing federal constitutional case that challenges New York's 34-year-old complete ban2 on any possession of the martial-arts weapon known as the nunchaku (pictured above and below). The mere possession of a nunchaku within one's own home for peaceful use in martial-arts practice by a person with no criminal record is classified as a misdemeanor that may carry up to a one-year prison sentence. Possession by a person with a criminal record is defined as a felony. Based upon research that I have conducted, it appears that New York and California are the only states in the United States that have ever defined and prosecuted as a crime the simple possession of nunchaku within one's own home. (Ironically, the nunchaku, which was originally a farm implement, was adapted for use as a weapon by the People of Okinawa after invading oppressive governments disarmed them, making it illegal to possess a sword or spear.)

Who knows if the Court will grant cert here. There are certainly other cases wending their way through the courts challenging whether the Second Amendment should apply to the states that the NRA has brought in Illinois and California. But maybe they can add in the nunchucks case on top of the NRA suits. Of course, there is a serious issue here, but can't you just imagine the comedic possibilities? As one commenter on Eugene Volokh's post writes,

As an originalist, I must conclude that nunchakus qualify as "arms" for Second Amendment purposes. After all, in 1789, the America still had a substantial pirate problem, and what better way to defeat pirates than with ninjas? The ninjas would have needed their nunchukus to defeat said pirates, so obviously nunchukus must have been in any well-stocked arsenal of the day.

Link via Eugene Volokh.