September 2, 2009 1:13PM # DC Gun Regulations By [Tim Lynch](https://www.cato.org/people/tim-lynch) --- SHARE A *Washington Post* reporter describes the [rigmarole](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/01/AR2009090103836_pf.html) Washington D.C. residents must endure to purchase a gun and keep it in one’s home for purposes of self-defense. Snippet: > It took $833.69, a total of 15 hours 50 minutes, four trips to the Metropolitan Police Department, two background checks, a set of fingerprints, a five-hour class and a 20-question multiple-choice exam. It’s a fair-minded article–not only about the government regulations, but also the factors that play into the decision to keep a gun–risk of crime, risk of accident, the personal willingness to use deadly force (not to mention getting approval from the spouse!) Cato Chairman [Bob Levy](https://www.cato.org/people/robert-levy), the prime mover of the landmark *Heller* ruling, discusses the [next legal fight](https://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10504): Whether one can carry a firearm outside of the home for purposes of self-defense. [Tom Palmer](https://www.cato.org/people/tom-palmer) is suing the DC government on this. For more on the Second Amendment and gun control, check out the new Cato book, *[Gun Control on Trial](http://www.catostore.org/index.asp?fa=ProductDetails&method=cats&scid=47&pid=1441412),* by Brian Doherty. ##### Related Tags [General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Government and Politics](https://www.cato.org/government-politics), [Constitutional Law](https://www.cato.org/constitutional-law), [Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies](https://www.cato.org/robert-levy-center-constitutional-studies) [![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).