What Does ‘Well Regulated’ Really Mean?

By Gregory Clay
Inside sources
April 11th. 2018




The interpretation of two words should be simple, shouldn’t it. On the surface, the answer is yes. Except, in this case, this surface can be a bit on the thorny side because we are talking about the Second Amendment.

And the two words are: “well regulated.”

The 27-word amendment reads: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

Dr. Robert J. Cottrol is the editor of the book “Gun Control and the Constitution: Sources and Explorations on the Second Amendment.” And Cottrol, a Second Amendment expert and legal historian, is the Harold Paul Green Research Professor of Law at George Washington University.

He says the words “well regulated” refer to proficiency and top-notch training.