The Second Amendment has no purpose other than to restrict the powers of the federal government. The right to keep and bear arms for a lawful purpose is not a right granted by the Constitution or dependent upon the Constitution for its existence. (Overruled by District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) and McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010)) Decided March 27, 1876 (argued 1875). Opinion of the Court: Morrison Waite → go there Dissenting: Clifford. Topic: Second Amendment rights. United States v. Cruikshank, 92 U.S. 542 (1876), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court, ruling that the U.S. Bill of Rights did not limit the power of private actors or state governments despite the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment. It reversed the federal criminal convictions for the civil rights violations committed in aid of anti-Reconstruction murders. Decided during the Reconstruction Era, the case represented a major defeat for federal efforts to protect the civil rights of African Americans. Wiki link