Two titanium hips limit Tom Gandy’s mobility, but come the day a burglar steps foot into his home — there will be blood.

With a personal arsenal and an aim sharpened in national shooting competitions, any prowler will be warned with the cocking of his gun.

“He’s not going to walk away,” Mr. Gandy said.

Local gun aficionados such as Mr. Gandy hailed the U.S. Supreme Court after last week’s ruling that citizens have the right to keep guns in their homes for self-defense. The ruling struck down a ban on handguns in the District of Columbia.

Boyd Cunningham, owner of A Bee’s Pawn & Gun on Messanie Street, said the landmark ruling reaffirms the meaning of the Second Amendment and now paves the way to legally challenge gun-control laws by local and state governments.

“The fact that they have interpreted the Second Amendment as an individual’s right, not a state’s right, will make a lot of these ordinances invalid and illegal,” Mr. Cunningham said.

To decide the case, the justices had to rule directly on the meaning of the Second Amendment, a provision with only 27 words.

Writing for the majority, Justice Antonin Scalia called the handgun America’s weapon of choice for self-defense because “it can be pointed at a burglar with one hand while the other hand dials the police.”

Mr. Gandy said such precise language in the long-overdue ruling is a direct response to the “milk toasty, weak-kneed liberals,” who advocate for tighter gun-control laws.

In St. Joseph, there has been no outcry for the ruling, as Missouri does not have any cities with a total handgun ban. The narrowly tailored ruling still permits reasonable restrictions on firearms — as well as who can’t own one, such as felons and the mentally ill.

Steve Fueston, a former armorer for the St. Joseph Police Department and currently a county courthouse marshal, said America was founded in gunsmoke, and meaningful gun legislation is now largely out of the realm.

“(But) I am a little upset with Missouri laws because they are so inadequate,” he said.

Mr. Fueston has taught classes to gun owners wishing to carry a concealed weapon. He said gun owners should be required to carry liability insurance much like motorists in Missouri.

Those wishing to conceal-carry should have to take training longer than the eight hours currently required, and to qualify on the same weapon they wish to carry, he said. Currently, 633 residents in Buchanan County are permitted to carry a concealed firearm.

“(The Supreme Court ruling) 200 years after founding is like closing the door after the horse is gone,” he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Ahmad Safi can be reached

at ahmadsafi@npgco.com.