The Supreme Court decision in U.S. v. Lopez (1995) was the
first time since the New Deal that the court limited the power of Congress
under the Commerce Clause.
Alfonso Lopez, a high school senior, was convicted by a
federal court of violating the Gun Free School Zones Act when he brought a
concealed weapon to school. He subsequently
challenged the conviction by arguing that the act was unconstitutional because
schools were under the authority of local and state government, not the federal
government.
However, the federal
government asserted that, under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution, it had
the authority to ban guns because commerce could potentially be negatively affected
by gun violence. The Supreme Court disagreed,
saying that the law was not significantly connected to commerce.
