gun control
| Dictionary: gun control |
n.
Regulation of the sale and use of rifles and handguns.
| 5min Related Video: gun control |
| Encyclopedia of Public Health: Gun Control |
Every year, more than two thousand people die in the United States from gun-related injuries. The population groups most affected by these avoidable deaths are children and young adolescents. The misuse of firearms is a problem worldwide, of course. However, the incidence of firearm use does vary from country to country. According to the United Nations Report on Firearm Regulation, Crime Prevention, and Criminal Justice (1997), the United States has "weaker firearm regulations and higher numbers of deaths involving firearms than all other industrialised—and even most developing —nations." The study also noted that the total firearm death rate in the United States in 1995 was 13.7 per 100,000 people, "three times the average rate among other responding countries and the third highest, after Brazil and Jamaica."
More than half the homes in the United States possess firearms, so it is hardly surprising that they rank among the "ten leading causes of death … accounting for more than 30,000 deaths annually" (Wintermute 1987, p. 3107). While most people have guns primarily for sporting activities, many owners also have them for personal protection and security purposes.
The public health approach to violence prevention attempts not only to reduce the occurrence of violence, but also to limit the numbers of fatal and nonfatal injuries when such events occur. To prevent gun-related violence, indeed any type of violence, it is important to understand the dynamics of violence as well as the role of different kinds of weapons in both fatal and nonfatal injuries. Research from around the world indicates that sociostructural factors such as high unemployment rates, ethnic and religious hostilities, political instability, financial inequalities, lack of resources, and economic deprivation increase the likelihood of violence. When guns are readily available in such settings, or where legislation to curb their illegitimate use is lax or inappropriate, injuries are more likely to occur, intentional or otherwise. Individual factors can also precipitate violence, including the use of firearms. Substance and alcohol abuse, mental disorders, feelings of personal inadequacy and social isolation, and an individual's experience with violence in the home are among some of the factors that have been associated with violence. One thing is certain: The more guns there are in circulation, the greater the likelihood that they will be misused. Hence, from a public health perspective, it is important to devise strategies which aim to ensure that those in possession of arms use them for legitimate purposes and not for violent or criminal acts.
There are a variety of ways of dealing with the problems caused by guns in society, and legislation is one of the methods most commonly used. Franklin Zimring has noted that laws that regulate gun use fall into three categories: those that limit the place and the manner of firearm use, those that keep guns out of the hands of high-risk users, and those that ban high risk firearms. Place and manner legislation sets out to do as it suggests, to limit certain uses of firearms in certain locations. Examples include banning the use of firearms in public places and prohibiting the carrying of a firearm (except for those carried by security personnel and police). This legislation is difficult to implement, however, without the active support of the police force, and that support requires additional funding to make sure that police monitor potentially violent events.
Successful place and manner legislation has been implemented in the country of Columbia, where firearms are involved in 80 percent of homicides. Here, an innovative gun control intervention was implemented by the Program for Development, Security, and Peace (DESEPAZ), in collaboration with the Mayor of Cali, Colombia's third largest city. A police-enforced ban was introduced in Cali that prohibited carrying firearms on weekends, public paydays, public holidays, and election days because "such periods were historically associated with higher rates of homicide" (Villaveces 2000, p. 1206). Media-led information campaigns informed the public of the new gun control measure. On the days when the ban was in operation, police set up strategically located checkpoints in areas of the city where criminal activities were commonplace, and they conducted random searches of individuals. "During the ban, police policy directed that if a legally acquired firearm was found on an individual, the weapon was to be temporarily taken from the individual and the individual fined. Individuals without proof of legally acquiring the firearm were to be arrested and the firearm permanently confiscated" (Villaveces, p. 1206). The aggressive intervention program operated in Cali during 1993 and 1994. A similar intervention was applied in Bogota from 1995 to 1997. The researchers studying the preventive effects of these measures reported that the "rate of homicide (in Cali) was 14 percent lower than expected during periods when the ban on carrying firearms was in effect" while it was "13 percent lower than expected (in Bogota) during intervention periods" (Villaveces, p. 1209). Whether such a program would work in areas where homicide rates are not as high is debatable. However, the researchers of this study suggest that this initiative could be replicated in places where similar conditions exist.
Denying high-risk users access to firearms is the second type of legislative tool to control gun misuse. In order for this approach to work, the law has to define clearly who falls into the category of "high-risk user." The term is usually applied to convicted criminals, those deemed "mentally unfit," and to drug addicts. It also applies to minors. Such legislation attempts to make it difficult for members of these groups to possess a firearm.
Every year, in developed and developing countries across the globe, thousands of children and young adolescents die while playing with loaded guns. Additionally, studies have shown that adolescents are vulnerable in terms of firearm misuse and successful suicide attempts. In the United States between 1965 and 1985 "the rate of suicide involving firearms increased 36 percent, whereas the rate of suicide involving other methods remained constant. Among adolescents and young adults, rates of suicide by firearms doubled during the same period" (Kellermann 1992, p. 467). Restricting the access minors have to weapons can help to reduce these events. Many states now attempt to prevent high-risk groups from obtaining firearms by identifying "ineligible" individuals before they can acquire a gun. Minors would obviously fall into this category. "The screening system included in U.S. legislation known as the Brady Bill permits police to determine whether a prospective gun purchaser has a criminal record. If the check turns up nothing … the purchaser can obtain the gun" (Zimring 1991, p. 53).
There are limitations to legislation that denies high-risk users access to firearms. Again, this kind of a law is difficult to enforce because it needs continuous police surveillance and relies heavily on the "ineligible person" actually being caught in possession of a firearm. It assumes that the potential outcome of being caught and punished will dissuade such persons from obtaining firearms. Moreover, there will always be alternative ways of obtaining a weapon, whether it be through the black market, theft, or getting another person to purchase the weapon. Screening systems also carry a cost and imply delays. However, even with these limitations, such legislation is a step in the right direction, as it can help to ensure that firearms are not sold directly to convicted felons or to minors. To overcome some of these difficulties, many states now require gun owners to register their weapons. However, many crimes are committed with stolen weapons that are used by someone other than the registered legal owner.
The third legislative strategy used to combat the misuse of firearms is to introduce legislation regulating the use of very dangerous weapons. Such "laws … limit the supply of high risk weapons" and "can complement the strategy of decreasing high risk uses and users" (Zimring, p. 53). Such supply reduction laws "strive to make the most dangerous guns so scarce that potential criminals cannot obtain them easily" (Zimring, p. 52). They also set out rigid requirements that must be met to prove that possession of such a weapon is necessary. Sawed-off shotguns, machine guns, and certain military devices are the kinds of weapons covered by this type of legislation. Research into this area in the United States has shown that states in which such strict laws operate have lower levels of violent crime than states that do not.
Another means of legislating for firearm misuse is to introduce stiff penalties for criminals caught using firearms. "More than half of the states in the USA have passed such laws. This approach is popular with gun owners because the penalties concern only gun related crime and place no restrictions on firearm ownership" (Zimring, p. 52).
Attempting to legislate for the complex realities of gun-related violence is a daunting task. The ideal gun control measure would be one that would "prevent all crime and violence involving guns without interfering with their legitimate use in contemporary life." In reality, the best we are likely to achieve is to reduce the problems caused by the illegitimate use of firearms while "minimizing the restraints on the legitimate uses of guns" (Zimring, p. 52). The strategy, or combination of strategies, employed in any given context will depend on the nature and severity of the problem.
(SEE ALSO: Adolescent Violence; Community Health; Legislation and Regulation; Suicide; Terrorism; Violence)
Bibliography
Kellermann, A. L.; Rivara, F. P.; Somes, G.; Reay; D. T.; Francisco, J.; Banton, G.; Prodzinski, J.; Fligner, C.; and Hackman, B. B. (1992). "Suicide in the Home in Relation to Gun Ownership." New England Journal of Medicine 327(7).
Villaveces, A.; Cummings, P.; Espitia, V. E.; Koepsell, T. D.; McKnight, B.; and Kellermann, A. L. (2000). "Effect of a Ban on Carrying Firearms on Homicide Rates in 2 Colombian Cities." Journal of the American Medical Association 283(9).
Wintermute, G. J.; Teret, S. P.; Kraus, J. F.; Wright, M. A.; and Bradfield, G. (1987). "When Children Shoot Children." Journal of American Medical Association 257(22).
Zimring, F. E. (1991). "Firearms, Violence and Public Policy." Scientific American (November).
— PAMELA HARTIGAN; ELAINE LAMMAS
| US History Encyclopedia: Gun Control |
Gun Control laws impose restrictions, limitations, or prohibitions on the ownership and use of firearms.
Colonial Era
The first American gun control laws were mandates that families own firearms, that they carry firearms on certain occasions (such as when going to church), and that they train with firearms periodically. These laws sometimes overlapped with militia laws, which required most able-bodied males to participate collectively in the military defense of their communities, using firearms supplied by themselves. However, the state gun control laws tended to go further, requiring gun ownership of people who were not part of the militia (for example, female heads of household).
In England gun control laws had frequently been imposed to disarm religious dissidents or the lower classes, especially during the restoration of the Stuart kings from 1660 to 1688. Colonial America had no analogous laws, although the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1630s did disarm the supporters of the religious dissident Anne Hutchinson, whose antinomian heresy favored a less rigid interpretation of the Bible.
Unlike religion, race has been a long-standing concern of American gun control laws. In 1640 Virginia's first recorded legislation about blacks barred them from owning guns. Fear of slave revolts led other southern colonies to enact similar laws. Southern militias enforced the laws preventing blacks from bearing arms, although this was far from the only function of the militia. Many colonial governments attempted to forbid trading firearms with Indians, but these laws were frequently evaded. Similar state and territorial laws in the nineteenth century also had little success.
Nineteenth Century
In antebellum nineteenth-century America, there were very few gun control laws of any kind that applied to white people. The major exception was a restriction on carrying concealed weapons, which was especially common in the South and which may have been an effort to suppress dueling.
An 1822 Kentucky decision, Bliss v. Commonwealth, interpreted the state constitution to declare a concealed handgun ban unconstitutional. Most courts, however, ruled that concealed handguns were an exception to the general right to bear arms under the Second Amendment and its many state constitutional analogues.
In 1846 with its Nunn v. State decision, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that a ban on the sale of most handguns violated the Second Amendment of the Constitution. During the nineteenth century, several states enacted special restrictions on edged weapons that were considered suitable only for criminal use (especially bowie knives and dirks). State courts often but not always upheld these laws against constitutional challenges. Usually courts interpreted the state constitution to parallel the federal Second Amendment, and ruled that both state and federal constitutions protected an individual's right to bear arms—primarily the type of arms useful for "civilized warfare," such as rifles, shotguns, muskets, handguns, and swords, but not billy clubs or bowie knives. A minority of courts went further, and extended protection to arms that were useful for personal protection, even if not useful for militia-type service.
In the 1857 Dred Scott v. Sandford case, U.S. Supreme Court chief justice Roger B. Taney defended his holding that free blacks could not be citizens, for if blacks were citizens, they would have the right to "the full liberty of speech in public and private upon all subjects upon which its [a state's] own citizens might speak; to hold public meetings upon political affairs, and to keep and carry arms wherever they went." As with most other laws regarding free blacks, state-based restrictions on gun ownership by free blacks grew more severe in the decades leading up to the Civil War. In the early republic North Carolina had enrolled free blacks in its militia, but such a policy had become unthinkable by the 1850s.
Immediately after the Civil War several southern states enacted "black codes," which were designed to keep former slaves in de facto slavery and submission. To provide practical protection for defensive gun ownership by the freedmen, the Republican Congress passed the Freedmen's Bureau Acts (1866 and 1868) and the Civil Rights Act of 1871, and sent the Fourteenth Amendment to the states for ratification. Many southern states, however, reacted by passing gun control laws that were facially neutral, but designed to disarm only blacks. For example, Tennessee in 1871 banned all handguns except the "Army and Navy" models. Former confederate soldiers already owned their high-quality service pistols. Freedmen were precluded from obtaining the inexpensive pistols that were beginning to proliferate in the American market. Other southern states enacted licensing and registration laws. Class violence was the main motive for gun control in the North. For example, an 1879 Illinois law forbade mass armed parades, a measure targeted at fraternal labor organizations. In Presser v. Illinois (1886), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that such parade bans did not violate the Second Amendment.
Twentieth Century
Concerns about anarchists, immigrants, and labor unrest became a powerful basis for gun control in the early twentieth century. South Carolina banned handgun sales and carrying in 1902, allowing only sales to and carrying by sheriffs and their special deputies (company "goons"). The ban was repealed in the 1960s. In 1911 Timothy Sullivan, a state senator from New York, authored the state's Sullivan Law, making a license a requirement for owning handguns and a separate, difficult-to-obtain license a requirement for carrying handguns. The law was sparked by concerns about gun crimes being perpetrated by immigrants, especially Italians and Jews. The Sullivan Law has usually been enforced with great stringency by the New York City Police Department, making it nearly impossible for New Yorkers to obtain a permit to own a handgun.
Oregon (1913) and Hawaii (1934) enacted handgun controls because of labor unrest tied to immigrant radicals. In 1934 California enacted a one-day waiting period (later expanded to fifteen days) for handgun purchases because of concerns about communism, as exemplified by San Francisco's "Red Raids." Many states enacted restrictions or prohibitions on gun possession by aliens.
Racial tension remained an important motive for gun control. Although blacks had been disarmed by the police and did not fight back against white mobs in the East St. Louis riot of 1917, the Missouri legislature still enacted a law requiring a police permit to obtain a handgun. In Michigan handgun permit laws were enacted after Dr. Ossian Sweet, a black man, shot and killed a person in a mob that was attacking his house because he had just moved into an all-white neighborhood. The Detroit police stood nearby, refusing to restrain the angry crowd. Defended by the civil rights attorney Clarence Darrow, Sweet was acquitted in a sensational 1925 trial.
Nationwide alcohol prohibition and the resulting gangster violence led to demands for additional gun control. The first federal law, banning the mail-order delivery of handguns, was enacted in this period. A number of states enacted licensing laws for the carrying of concealed weapons. Based on the model Uniform Pistol and Revolver Act, the laws were usually supported by gun rights advocates as a successful tactic to defuse calls for handgun prohibition. Federally, the National Firearms Act of 1934 imposed a $200 tax and a registration requirement on the ownership of machine guns, short-barreled shotguns, and other weapons thought to be favored by gangsters. A 1938 federal law required firearms dealers to possess federal licenses.
Gun confiscation laws in fascist and communist countries were widely reviled in the United States, and almost no gun control laws were enacted in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1941 Congress amended the Property Requisition Act (allowing the president to seize material needed for war) with specific language to protect the Second Amendment and to prevent the confiscation of personal firearms.
President John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963 did not immediately lead to more gun control laws, but the urban riots of 1965–1968, sharply rising violent crime rates, and the 1968 assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy spurred a massive wave of gun controls. Illinois and New Jersey enacted statewide gun licensing; California, aiming at the Black Panthers, restricted the unconcealed carrying of firearms. New York City required the registration of long guns; and many other states and localities enacted laws, especially restrictions on gun carrying.
The federal Gun Control Act (GCA) of 1968 greatly tightened restrictions on firearms dealers, and created a federal list of "prohibited persons" (including convicted felons, persons dishonorably discharged from the military, and drug users) who were barred by federal law from possessing firearms. Concerns about abusive enforcement of the GCA led Congress in 1986 to pass the Firearms Owners' Protection Act, which invoked the Second, Fourth, and Fifth Amendments and restricted search and seizure powers of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. The 1986 law also eased the 1968 restrictions on interstate sales of long guns and ammunition.
During this time the first enduring national gun control groups were founded. After a series of name changes, the groups became known as the Brady Campaign and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. Several other national groups were formed in the 1980s and 1990s, as well as many state or local affiliates of the national groups. Some celebrities became public advocates for gun control, including the comedian Rosie O'Donnell.
The two terms of the Clinton administration saw an explosion of gun control activity, with the enactment in 1993 of the Brady Act (imposing a waiting period that sunset in 1998) and the requirement that gun sellers use the "National Instant Check System" (a Federal Bureau of Investigations database of convicted felons) before selling guns to a customer at retail. The manufacture of so-called "assault weapons" (guns with a military appearance) was banned in 1994, as was the manufacture of magazines holding more than ten rounds. About a half dozen states have some kind of "assault weapon" law. The administration imposed many other restrictions, especially on gun dealers. According to President Bill Clinton, an antigun control backlash delivered the U.S. House and Senate to the Republicans in the 1994 elections and cost Al Gore the presidency in the 2000 election.
By the early twenty-first century almost all states adopted some kind of "preemption" law to limit or abolish local-level gun controls, thus reserving gun control legislation exclusively to the state legislature; preemption laws became especially popular after handguns were banned by the city of Washington, D.C., and by two Chicago suburbs, Morton Grove and Oak Park.
In 1988 Florida started a trend which by 2002 had led 33 states to adopt "shall issue" laws, requiring authorities to issue concealed handgun carry permits to all adult applicants who pass background checks and (in most states) a safety training class. During the early and mid-1990s when concern about youth violence was especially intense, many states enacted restrictions on juvenile gun (especially handgun) possession.
Over the years, about two dozen court cases have found a local, state, or federal gun control law to violate the Second Amendment or the right to bear arms clause that is contained in forty-four state constitutions. Most gun control laws, however, have withstood legal challenge.
Bibliography
Carter, Gregg. The Gun Control Movement. New York: Twayne, 1997.
Cottrol, Robert, ed. Gun Control and the Constitution. New York: Garland, 1993.
Cramer, Clayton. For the Defense of Themselves and the State: The Original Intent and the Judicial Interpretation of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 1994.
Halbrook, Stephen P. Freedmen, The Fourteenth Amendment, and the Right to Bear Arms, 1866–1876. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 1988.
Kopel, David B. The Samurai, the Mountie, and the Cowboy: Should America Adopt the Gun Controls of Other Democracies?. Buffalo, N.Y.: Prometheus, 1992.
Young, David, ed. The Origin of the Second Amendment. Ontonagon, Mich.: Golden Oak, 1995.
[T]his is one of the fundamental principles, upon which rests the great fabric of civil liberty, reared by the fathers of the Revolution and of the country. And the Constitution of the United States, in declaring that the right of the people to keep and bear arms, should not be infringed, only reiterated a truth announced a century before, in the act of 1689, 'to extend and secure the rights and liberties of English subjects'—Whether living 3,000 or 300 miles from the royal palace. …
If a well-regulated militia is necessary to the security of the State of Georgia and of the United States, is it competent for the General Assembly to take away this security, by disarming the people? What advantage would it be to tie up the hands of the national legislature, if it were in the power of the States to destroy this bulwark of defence? In solemnly affirming that a well-regulated militia is necessary to the security of a free State, and that, in order to train properly that militia, the unlimited right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be impaired, are not the sovereign people of the State committed by this pledge to preserve this right inviolate…
The right of the whole people, old and young, men, women and boys, and not militia only, to keep and bear arms of every description, and not such merely as are used by the militia, shall not be infringed, curtailed, or broken in upon, in the smallest degree; and all this for the important end to be attained: the rearing up and qualifying a well-regulated militia, so vitally necessary to the security of a free State. Our opinion is, that any law, State or Federal, is repugnant to the Constitution, and void, which contravenes this right, originally belonging to our forefathers, trampled under foot by Charles I. and his two wicked sons and successors, re-established by the revolution of 1688, conveyed to this land of liberty by the colonists, and finally incorporated conspicuously in our own Magna Charta! And Lexington, Concord, Camden, River Raisin, Sandusky, and the laurel-crowned field of New Orleans plead eloquently for this interpretation! And the acquisition of Texas may be considered the full fruits of this great constitutional right.
—Excerpt from Nunn v. State, 1846
| Columbia Encyclopedia: gun control |
gun control, government limitation of the purchase and ownership of firearms. The availability of guns is controlled by nations and localities throughout the world. In the United States the "right of the people to keep and bear arms" is guaranteed by the Constitution, but has been variously interpreted through the years. Since the late 1930s federal judicial and law enforcement officials generally held that the right exists mainly in the context of the maintenance of a state militia, but in 2002 the Justice Dept., under Attorney General John Ashcroft, indicated that it interpreted the amendment as more broadly supporting the rights of individuals to possess and bear firearms. Such an interpretation was upheld by a 2008 Supreme Court decision that nonetheless did not challenge the government's right to place some limitations on the ownership and possession of firearms.
Some U.S. states and localities have enacted strict licensing and other control measures, and federal legislation (1968) prohibited the sale of rifles by mail. Gun control has continued to be widely debated, however, and has often been opposed, notably by the National Rifle Association (NRA). Increasing gun-related crimes together with citizen pressure propelled congressional passage (1993) of the "Brady bill" (named for James Brady, the press secretary seriously wounded in the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan) after years of controversy. It required a minimum of a five-day waiting period and background check before a handgun purchase. Parts of the bill were challenged in court and in 1997 the Supreme Court invalidated its background-check provision. The 1994 Crime Bill outlawed the manufacture, sale, and possession of military-style assault weapons, but it expired in 2004. In 1999, following a rash of shootings at U.S. schools, further gun-control legislation was passed by the Senate but was voted down by the House of Representatives. Attempts by localities (through legislation) and individuals (through lawsuits) to pursue gun control through the courts by permitting or bringing negligence suits against a gun manufacturer or dealer when a weapon it made or sold is used in a crime led many states and, in 2005, Congress to pass laws limiting such suits.
| Law Encyclopedia: Gun Control |
This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.
Government regulation of the manufacture, sale, and possession of firearms.
The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is at the heart of the issue of gun control. The Second Amendment declares that, "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."
To many, the language of the amendment appears to grant to the people the absolute right to bear arms. However, the U.S. Supreme Court has held that the amendment merely protects the right of states to form a state militia (United States v. Miller, 307 U.S. 174, 59 S. Ct. 816, 83 L. Ed. 1206 [1939]).
Even before the Miller opinion defined the Second Amendment in 1939, Congress, state legislatures, and local governing bodies were passing laws that infringed on the right to bear arms. Kentucky passed the first state legislation prohibiting the carrying of concealed weapons, in 1813. By 1993 firearms were regulated by approximately twenty-three thousand federal, state, and local laws.
State and local firearms laws vary widely. Thirteen states prohibit only the carrying of concealed handguns. At the other end of the spectrum, three Chicago suburbs — Morton Grove, Oak Park, and Evanston — ban handgun ownership outright. Generally, firearms regulations are more restrictive in large metropolitan areas.
State and local firearms laws and ordinances include outright bans of certain firearms, prohibitions on the alteration of certain firearms, and restrictions on the advertising of guns. State gun control laws also address the theft of handguns, inheritance of firearms, use of firearms as collateral for loans, possession of firearms by aliens, discharge of firearms in a public area, and alteration of numbers or other identifying markings on firearms. States generally base their power to control firearms on the police power provisions of their constitutions, which grant to the states the right to enact laws for public safety.
Congress finds its power to regulate firearms in the Commerce Clause, in Article I, Section 8, Clause 3, of the U.S. Constitution. Under the Commerce Clause, Congress may regulate commercial activity between the states and commerce with foreign countries. In reviewing federal legislation enacted pursuant to the Commerce Clause, the U.S. Supreme Court has given Congress tremendous leeway. Under the Commerce Clause, Congress may enact criminal statutes regarding firearms if the activity at issue relates to interstate transactions, affects interstate commerce, or is such that control is necessary and proper to carry out the intent of the Commerce Clause.
In 1927, Congress passed the Mailing of Firearms Act, 18 U.S.C.A. § 1715, which banned the shipping of concealable handguns through the mail. Congress followed this with the National Firearms Act of 1934 (ch. 757, 48 Stat. 1236-1240 [26 U.S.C.A. § 1132 et seq.]), which placed heavy taxes on the manufacture and distribution of firearms. One year later, Congress prohibited unlicensed manufacturers and dealers from shipping firearms across state borders, with the Federal Firearms Act of 1938 (ch. 850, § 2(f), 52 Stat. 1250, 1251).
In 1968, after the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, civil rights activists Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr., and Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Congress responded to the public outcry by passing the Gun Control Act of 1968 (Pub. L. No. 90-615, § 102, 82 Stat. 1214 [codified at 18 U.S.C.A. §§ 921-928]). This act repealed the Federal Firearms Act and replaced it with increased federal control over firearms. Title I of the act requires the federal licensing of anyone manufacturing or selling guns or ammunition. Title I also prohibits the interstate mail-order sale of guns and ammunition, the sale of guns to minors or persons with criminal records, and the importation of certain firearms. Title II of the act imposes the same restrictions on other destructive devices, such as bombs, grenades, and other explosive materials.
Between 1979 and 1987, a total of 693,000 people in the United States were assaulted by criminals armed with handguns. Statistics such as this as well as high profile shootings, such as that of President Ronald Reagan and his aide, James Brady, in 1982, led to pressure for further gun control measures.
In November 1993 Congress passed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (18 U.S.C.A. §§ 921-922 [1994]). The Brady Act imposes a five-day waiting period before a handgun may be taken home by a purchaser. During the waiting period, the seller is required to check the background of the buyer. Under the act, the waiting period will be phased out, to be replaced by a national computerized system for background checks.
In August 1994, Congress passed legislation banning so-called assault weapons under title XI of the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act (Pub. L. No. 103-322, 108 Stat. 1796 [codified as amended in scattered sections of 42 U.S.C.A.]). This act bans the manufacture, sale, and use of nineteen types of semiautomatic weapons and facsimiles, as well as certain high-capacity ammunition magazines.
In 1995 the U.S. Supreme Court set a limit on gun control with its decision in United States v. Lopez, 514 U.S. 549, 115 S. Ct. 1624, 131 L. Ed. 2d 626. In Lopez, the Court ruled that Congress had exceeded its authority under the Commerce Clause in passing a law that criminalized the possession of a firearm within one thousand feet of a school (Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 [18 U.S.C.A. § 922(1)(1)(A)]). The Court held that because such gun possession was not an economic activity that significantly affected interstate commerce, it was beyond Congress's power to regulate.
Family planning clinics that received federal funding were under a gag rule from 1988 to 1993 when they were prevented from discussing abortion with clients. A hunter must obtain a license and obey state and federal game laws. This woman used a rifle to shoot an antelope in Wyoming.
See: weapons.
| Wikipedia: Gun politics |
| This article is part of the Politics series |
| Gun politics by country |
| Politics portal |
Gun politics is a set of legal issues surrounding the ownership, use, and regulation of firearms as well as safety issues related to firearms both through their direct use and through legal and criminal use.[1]
Contents |
International
National sovereignty
Most nations hold the power to protect themselves and police their own territory as a fundamental power vested by sovereignty. However, this power can be lost under certain circumstances. Some nations have been forced to disarm by other nations, upon losing a war, or by having arms embargos or sanctions placed on them. Likewise, nations that violate international arms control agreements, even if claiming to be acting within the scope of their national sovereignty, may find themselves with a range of penalties or sanctions regarding firearms placed on them by other nations.
Enforcement
National and regional police and security services also conduct their own gun regulations. For example, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) supports the United States' International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) program "to aggressively enforce this mission and reduce the number of weapons that are illegally trafficked worldwide from the United States and used to commit acts of international terrorism, to subvert restrictions imposed by other nations on their residents, and to further organized crime and narcotics-related activities.[2]
Worldwide politics and legislation
There are many areas of debate into what kinds of firearms should be allowed to be privately owned, if any, and how, where and when they may be used.
Australia
Main article: Gun politics in Australia
Firearm laws in Australia are enforced at a State level. The minimum age for any shooter is 12 years. To obtain a full firearm license a person must pass a background check, a basic course of firearm safety and be at least 18 years of age.
For every firearm, a purchaser must obtain a Permit To Acquire. The first permit for each person has a mandatory 28 day delay before it is issued. In some states, such as Queensland, this is waived for second and subsequent firearms of the same class, whilst in others, it is not. For each firearm a "Genuine Reason" must be given, relating to pest control, hunting, target shooting, or collecting. Self-defense is not accepted as a reason for issuing a license.
Handguns are only available to target shooting club members after a rigorous probation period. Since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, all semi-automatic longarms and pump shotguns have been almost completely banned. There is an on-going amnesty for those who surrender such weapons.
Brazil
Main article: Gun politics in Brazil
All firearms in Brazil are required to be registered with the state. The minimum age for ownership is 25[3] and it is generally illegal to carry a gun outside a residence.[4] The total number of firearms in Brazil is thought to be around 17 million[4] with 9 million of those being unregistered.[3] Some 39,000 people died in 2003 due to gun-related injuries nationwide.[4] In 2004, the number was 36,000.[3] Although Brazil has 100 million fewer citizens than the United States, and more restrictive gun laws, there are 25 percent more gun deaths;[5] other sources indicate that homicide rates due to guns are approximately four times higher than the rate in the United States.[6] Brazil has the second largest arms industry in the Western Hemisphere.[6] Approximately 80 percent of the weapons manufactured in Brazil are exported, mostly to neighboring countries; many of these weapons are then smuggled back into Brazil.[6] Some firearms in Brazil come from police and military arsenals, having either been "stolen or sold by corrupt soldiers and officers."[6]
In 2005, a referendum was held in Brazil on the sale of firearms and ammunition to attempt to lower the number of deaths due to guns. Material focused on gun rights in opposition to the gun ban was translated from information from the National Rifle Association, much of which focused on US Constitutional discussions focused around the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution.[5] Although the Brazilian Government, the Catholic Church, and the United Nations, among others, fought for the gun ban, the people of Brazil spoke out, telling the government and other international organizations to trust their fellow citizens over the police and government security services.[3]
Canada
Main article: Gun politics in Canada
The stated intent of Canadian firearms laws are to control firearms so as to improve public safety. There is no inherent right to own or to use firearms in Canada. There is no right for non-residents to import firearms legal in their home country. There are aspects of the national laws that are controversial in some areas of the country, mainly due to large cities having gang gun violence problems and rural areas not having these problems.[7]
Every firearm is required by law to be registered in Canada. In addition, users must possess a license, called a "possession and acquisition license (PAL)". A firearms safety course must be passed prior to applying for a PAL. A non-resident (i.e., non-Canadian) can have a "non-resident firearms declaration" confirmed by a customs officer, which provides for a temporary 60 authorization to have a firearm in Canada. A 12-17 year old licence enables the borrowing (not owning) of a shotgun or firearm for target or hunting purposes.[8] There are three categories of firearms for purposes of Canadian law: non-restricted, restricted, and prohibited. Restricted and prohibited weapons may actually be owned and used in some circumstances.[9]
China
Gun ownership in the People's Republic of China outside of the military, police, and paramilitary is forbidden. Possession or sale of firearms results in a minimum punishment of 3 years in prison, with the maximum being the death penalty.[10]
East Timor
Under East Timorese law, only the military and police forces may legally possess, carry and use firearms. However, despite these laws, East Timor has many problems with illegally-armed militias, including widespread violence in 2006 which resulted in over 100,000 people being forced from their homes, as well as two separate assassination attempts on the Prime Minister and President in early 2008.
However, in late June 2008, the Prime Minister, Xanana Gusmao, introduced a proposed gun law to Parliament for "urgent debate", pushing back scheduled budgetary discussions. The new law, which would allow civilians to own guns, sparked heated scenes in the East Timorese parliament between the parliamentarians who support the new law and those who oppose it. The United Nations, which has a peacekeeping force deployed in the nation, also expressed concern over the new law.[11]
European Union
In late 2007 the European Union lawmakers adopted a legislative report to tighten gun control laws and establish an extensive firearms database.[12] Passed with overwhelming backing, the tough new gun control rules were "hoped to prevent Europe from becoming a gun-friendly culture like the United States".[13]
Czech Republic
Main article: Gun politics in the Czech Republic
Gun ownership in the Czech Republic is regulated by relatively liberal gun laws compared to the rest of Europe. The last Gun Act was passed in 2001 and replaced the old Law tightening the legislation slightly. Generally guns in the Czech Republic are available to anybody above 18 (or 21) with a clean criminal history. The gun ownership is also acceptable for self-defense purposes. Unlike most European countries the Czech gun laws allow its citizens to carry a concealed weapon without having any specific reason.
Slovakia
Gun ownership in Slovakia is regulated by gun laws. The gun ownership is not fully acceptable for self-defense purposes because is required to have other specific reason for bear arms. Generally guns in the Slovakia are available to anybody with gun licence and purchase permission above 21 with a clean criminal history. Air guns with muzzle energy up to 15 J, gas guns and muzzle-loaded guns are available to anybody above 18 without permission. There is restriction in muzzle energy output - handguns up to 1000 J, rifles up to 6000 J. Automatic guns, laser sights, silencers and hollow point bullets are forbidden. Gun licence can be issued for 6 categories (A - gun-toting, B - gun-holding, C - gun-toting for work purposes, D - long guns for hunting, E - sporting guns, F - guns collecting )
Finland
Main article: Gun politics in Finland
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Germany
Main article: Gun Politics in Germany
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United Kingdom
Main article: Gun politics in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) has one of the lowest levels of gun ownership and one of the lowest rates of intentional gun deaths. However, this is only in mainland Great Britain. Firearms ownership is still very high in Northern Ireland.[14] The gun crime rate rose between 1997 and 2004 but has since slightly receded,[15] while the number of murders from gun crime has largely remained static over the past decade.[16] Over the course of the 20th century, the UK gradually implemented tighter regulation of the civilian ownership of firearms through the enactment of the 1968, 1988, 1994 and 1997 Firearms (Amendment) Acts[17] leading to the current outright ban on the ownership of all automatic, and most self-loading, firearms in the UK. The ownership of breech-loading handguns is, in particular, also very tightly controlled and effectively limited (other than in Northern Ireland)[18] to those persons who may require such a handgun for the non routine humane killing of injured or dangerous animals. Each firearm owned must be registered on a Firearms Certificate (FAC) or shotgun certificate which is issued by the local police authority who will require the prospective owner to demonstrate a "good reason" for each firearm held (e.g. pest control or target shooting) and may place restrictions on the FAC relating to the type and amount of ammunition that is held and the places and the uses the firearms are put to.[19] Historically, most certificates approved for handguns listed "self defence" as a reason. Since 1968 in mainland Britain, self-defense alone is not considered an acceptable "good reason" for firearm ownership. Only in Northern Ireland is self-defence still accepted as a reason. The police should not amend, revoke (even partially) or refuse an FAC without stating a valid reason. (Section 29(1) of the 1968 Act gives the chief officer power to vary, by a notice in writing, any such condition not prescribed by the rules made by the Secretary of State. The notice may require the holder to deliver the certificate to the chief officer within twenty one days for the purpose of amending the conditions. The certificate may be revoked if the holder fails to comply with such a requirement.)
Air rifles under 12 ft/lbs and air pistols under 6 ft/lbs can be purchased legally by anyone over the age of 18, and do not require a licence.[20]
Japan
During the Tokugawa period in Japan, starting in the 17th century, the government imposed very restrictive controls on the small number of gunsmiths in the nation, thereby ensuring the almost total prohibition of firearms.[21]
Japan, in the postwar period, has had gun regulation which is strict in principle, but the application and enforcement has been inefficient. Gun licensing is required, but is generally treated as only a formality. There are background check requirements, but these requirements are typically not enforced unless a specific complaint has been filed, and then background checks are made after the fact. As is common in Japan, "regulations are treated more as road maps than as rules subject to active enforcement. Japan is still a very safe country when it comes to guns, a reality that has less to do with laws than with prevailing attitudes".[22][23]
The weapons law begins by stating "No-one shall possess a fire-arm or fire-arms or a sword or swords", and very few exceptions are allowed.[22] The only types of firearms which a Japanese citizen may even contemplate acquiring is a rifle or shotgun. Sportsmen are permitted to possess shotguns or rifles for hunting and for skeet and trap shooting, but only after submitting to a lengthy licensing procedure.[24] Without a license, a person may not even hold a gun in his or her hands.
Recently in Japan the ruling conservative Liberal Democratic Party, in response to violent crimes by minors and gangsters, has called for rewriting the constitution to include new more stringent firearms control measures.[25] In January 2008 Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda in a policy speech called for tighter regulations on firearms.[26]
Mexico
Main article: Gun politics in Mexico
Mexico has strict gun laws. Mexican citizens may purchase arms for self-protection or hunting only after receiving approval of a petition to the Defense Ministry, which performs extensive background checks. The allowed weapons are restricted to relatively low-caliber and must be purchased from the Defense Ministry only. President Felipe Calderón has recently called attention to the problem of the smuggling of guns from the United States into Mexico, guns which are easily available both legally and illegally in the United States, and has called for increased cooperation from the United States to stop this illegal weapons trafficking.[27][28]
Norway
Main article: Gun politics in Norway
While having a large amount of civilian owned guns, Norway has a low gun crime rate.
South Africa
Main article: Gun politics in South Africa
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Switzerland
Main article: Gun politics in Switzerland
In one study by David Kopel of seven countries, including the United States and Japan, Switzerland is found to be one of the safest countries in the study.[29] In recent times political opposition has expressed a desire for tighter gun regulations.[29] Switzerland practices universal conscription, which requires that all able-bodied male citizens keep fully-automatic firearms at home in case of a call-up. Every male between the ages of 20 and 42 is considered a candidate for conscription into the military, and following a brief period of active duty will commonly be enrolled in the militia until age or an inability to serve ends his service obligation.[30] During their enrollment in the armed forces, these men are required to keep their government-issued selective fire combat rifles and semi-automatic handguns in their homes.[31] Up until September 2007, soldiers also received 20 rounds of government-issued ammunition in a sealed box for storage at home.[32] In addition to these official weapons, Swiss citizens are allowed to purchase surplus-to-inventory combat rifles, and shooting is a popular sport in all the Swiss cantons.
United States
Main article: Gun politics in the United States
The issue of firearms has, at times, taken a high-profile position in United States culture and politics.[33] Michael Bouchard, Assistant Director/Field Operations of ATF, estimates that 5,000 gun shows take place each year in the United States.[34] Incidents of gun violence in 'gun-free' school zones, such as the Virginia Tech massacre of 2007 have ignited debate[35] involving gun politics in the United States.
Support for gun control in America has been steadily dropping. Currently, the American public strongly opposes attempts to ban gun ownership, and is divided on attempts to limit gun ownership. A 2008 Gallup poll revealed that 28% of the population supported a total ban on handguns — the lowest level since the poll was first taken in 1959 (when support for a total ban was 60% of the population). This same poll revealed that 49% of Americans in 2008 preferred more restrictive gun laws, compared to 78% when the question was first asked in the 1990 version of the poll.[36] A 2009 CNN poll found even lower levels of support for gun laws: in this poll, only 39% favored more restrictive laws. The poll indicates that the drop in support (compared to 2001 polls) came from self-identified Independents, with levels of opposition among Democrats and Republicans remaining consistent.[37]
There is a sharp divide between gun-rights proponents[38] and gun-control proponents.[39] This leads to intense political debate over the effectiveness of firearm regulation.[40]
On the whole, Democrats are far more likely to support "stricter" gun control than are Republicans. According to a 2004 Harris Interactive survey:
Republicans and Democrats hold different views on gun control. A 71% to 11% majority of Democrats favors "stricter" rather than "less strict" gun control, whereas Republicans are split 35% "stricter" to 35% "less strict" with 24% of Republicans and 13% of Democrats opting for "neither".[41]
The division of beliefs may be attributable to the fact that Republicans are more likely to own guns, according to General Social Surveys conducted during the last 35 years. The graphs, below, show that gun ownership has generally declined; however, Republicans — especially men — are far more likely to own "guns or revolvers."[42]
More recently in a 2008 survey completed by Gallup, there are large differences between Republicans and Democrats on the issues of gun ownership and control:[43] •More than half of Republicans report having a gun in their homes, while only about a third of Democrats report this. •Two in three Republicans say they are satisfied with the nation's laws or policies on guns. This percentage is much lower among Democrats, at 37%. •The strong majority of Democrats feel that gun laws in the United States should be stricter, while only about 4 in 10 Republicans feel this way. Forty-eight percent of Republicans feel gun laws should remain as they are at the present time.
Incidents of gun violence and self-defense have routinely ignited bitter debate. About 10,000 murders are committed using firearms annually,[44] Surveys have suggested that guns are used in crime deterrence or prevention around 2.5 million times a year in the United States.[45][46][47][48] The American Journal of Public Health conducted a study that concluded "the United States has higher rates of firearm ownership than do other developed nations, and higher rates of homicide. Of the 233,251 people who were homicide victims in the United States between 1988 and 1997, 68% were killed with guns, of which the large majority were handguns."[49] The ATF estimated in 1995 that the number of firearms available in the US was 223 million.[50]
Some perceive that firearms registration– by making it easier for Federal agents to target gun owners for harassment and confiscation– constitutes an easily exploited encroachment upon individual personal privacy and property rights.[51][52][53][54]
In contrast, in a 2008 brief submitted to the United State Supreme Court, the Department of Justice advocated that reasonable regulation of weaponry has always been allowed by the Second Amendment in the interests of public safety.[55] In District of Columbia v. Heller, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment secures an individual right to own and possess handguns in a home for self-defense. See below.
Fully-automatic firearms are legal in most states, but have requirements for registration and restriction under federal law. The National Firearms Act of 1934 required approval of the local police chief, federally registered fingerprints, federal background check and the payment of a $200 tax for initial registration and for each transfer.[56] The Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibited imports of all nonsporting firearms and created several new categories of restricted firearms. The act also prohibited further registry of most automatic firearms. A provision of the Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986 banned private ownership of machine guns manufactured after it took effect.[57]
The result has been a massive rise in the price of machine-guns available for private ownership, as an increased demand chases the fixed, pre-1986 supply. For example, the Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine-gun, which may be sold to law enforcement for about $1,000,[58] costs a private citizen about $20,000.[59] This price difference dwarfs the $200 tax stamp.
Political scientist Earl R. Kruschke states, regarding the fully-automatic firearms owned by private citizens in the United States, that "approximately 175,000 automatic firearms have been licensed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (the federal agency responsible for administration of the law) and evidence suggests that none of these weapons has ever been used to commit a violent crime."[60]
District of Columbia v Heller
Main article: District of Columbia v. Heller
On June 26, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court held that American citizens have an individual right to own guns, as defined by the Second Amendment of the Constitution. In District of Columbia v. Heller,[61] the Court stated that an absolute firearm ban was unconstitutional.[62] The Court further determined that its decision in Heller does not impinge upon existing statutes and regulations, such as those that prohibit felons and the mentally-ill from owning or possessing firearms.[63]
Arguments
Gun ownership and gun violence
Several studies have examined the correlations between rates of gun ownership and gun-related as well as overall homicide and suicide rates within various jurisdictions around the world.[64][65] Martin Killias, in a study covering 21 countries, found that there were substantial correlations between gun ownership and gun-related suicide and homicide rates. There was also a substantial though lesser correlation between gun ownership and total homicide rates.[66] It also reported a strong correlation between gun-related homicide of women and gun-related assaults against women; however, this was not the case for similar crimes against men.[67] This study indicates correlation, but no causality. That is to say it could mean that the easier access to guns lead to more violence, or it could mean that larger amounts of violence lead to a higher level of gun ownership for self defense, or any other independent cause.
A study by Rich et al. on suicide rates in Toronto and Ontario and psychiatric patients from San Diego reached the conclusion that increased gun restrictions, while reducing suicide-by-gun, resulted in no net decline in suicides, because of substitution of another method — namely leaping.[68] Killias argues against the theory of complete substitution, citing a number of studies that have indicated, in his view "rather convincingly", that suicidal candidates far from always turn to another means of suicide if their preferred means is not at hand.[67]
Gun ownership as a means of resisting tyranny
Advocates for gun rights often point to previous totalitarian regimes that passed gun control legislation, which was later followed by confiscation. Totalitarian governments such as Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany during World War II, as well as some communist states such as the People's Republic of China are cited as examples of this,[69][70][71] Gun control opponents often cite the example of the Nazi regime. In their view, once the Nazis had taken and consolidated their power, they proceeded to implement gun control laws to disarm the population and wipe out the opposition, and genocide of disarmed Jews, gypsies, and other undesirables followed.[72][73][74] Historians have pointed out that already the democratic Weimar Republic had restrictive gun laws, which were actually liberalized by the Nazis. According to the Weimar Republic 1928 Law on Firearms & Ammunition, firearms acquisition or carrying permits were “only to be granted to persons of undoubted reliability, and — in the case of a firearms carry permit — only if a demonstration of need is set forth.” The Nazis replaced this law with the Weapons Law of March 18, 1938, which was very similar in structure and wording, but relaxed gun control requirements for the general populace. The relaxation included, for example, the exemption from regulation of all weapons and ammunition except handguns, the extension of the range of persons exempt from the permit requirement, and the lowering of the age for acquisition of firearms from 20 to 18. It did, however, prohibit manufacturing of firearms and ammunition by Jews.[75] Shortly thereafter, in the additional Regulations Against Jew’s Possession of Weapons of November 11, 1938, Jews were forbidden from possession of any weapons at all.[74][75]
Location and capture of such records is a standard doctrine taught to military intelligence officers; and was widely practiced by German and Soviet troops during World War II.[72][73]
Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union did not abolish personal gun ownership during the initial period from 1918 to 1929; the introduction of gun control in 1929 coincided with the beginning of the repressive Stalinist regime as part of Resolutions, 1918 Decree, July 12, 1920 Art. 59 & 182, Pen. code, 1926.
The Battles of Lexington and Concord, sometimes known as the Shot heard 'round the world, in the 1770s, were started in part because General Gage sought to carry out an order by the British government to disarm the populace.[76]
Self-defense
In an extensive series of studies of large, nationally representative samples of crime incidents, criminologist Gary Kleck found that crime victims who defend themselves with guns are less likely to be injured or lose property than victims who either did not resist, or resisted without guns. This was so, even though the victims using guns typically faced more dangerous circumstances than other victims. The findings applied to both robberies and assaults.[77] Other research on rape indicated that although victims rarely resisted with guns, those using other weapons were less likely to be raped, and no more likely to suffer other injuries besides rape itself, than victims who did not resist, or resisted without weapons.[78] There is no evidence that victim use of a gun for self-protection provokes offenders into attacking the defending victim or results in the offender taking the gun away and using it against the victim.[79]
Kleck has also shown, in his own national survey, and in other surveys with smaller sample sizes, that the numbers of defensive uses of guns by crime victims each year are probably substantially larger than the largest estimates of the number of crimes committed of offenders using guns.[80] Thus, defensive gun use by victims is both effective and, relative to criminal uses, frequent. In a largely approving review of Kleck's book Point Blank (1991) in the journal Political Psychology, Joseph F. Sheley argues that Kleck sidesteps the larger political problem of the role of gun culture in contributing to the spread and effect of violence in the United States.[81]
The economist John Lott, in his book More Guns, Less Crime, states that laws which make it easier for law-abiding citizens to get a permit to carry a gun in public places, cause reductions in crime. Lott's results suggest that allowing law-abiding citizens to carry concealed firearms deters crime because potential criminals do not know who may or may not be carrying a firearm. Lott's data came from the FBI's crime statistics from all 3,054 US counties.[82]
Critics, mostly gun-control advocates, have asserted that Lott's county-based crime data were largely meaningless because they did not reflect actual rates of crime in all the counties that Lott studied, but rather the number of crimes occurring in whatever local jurisdictions (towns and cities) that happened to report their crime statistics to state authorities. Thus, some of the supposed crime drops that Lott attributed to the new carry laws could merely have been the result of fewer local police forces reporting crime statistics. Lott answered their assertions by publishing his study and noting that this fact was taken into account by using the same police agencies that reported their statistics both before and after the new concealed carry laws took effect.
The efficacy of gun control legislation at reducing the availability of guns has been challenged by, among others, the testimony of criminals that they do not obey gun control laws, and by the lack of evidence of any efficacy of such laws in reducing violent crime. The most thorough analysis of the impact of gun control laws, by Kleck, covered 18 major types of gun control and every major type of violent crime or violence (including suicide), and found that gun laws generally had no significant effect on violent crime rates or suicide rates.[83] In his paper, Understanding Why Crime Fell in the 1990s: Four Factors that Explain the Decline and Six that Do not,[84] University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt argues that available data indicate that neither stricter gun control laws nor more liberal concealed carry laws have had any significant effect on the decline in crime in the 1990s. While the debate remains hotly disputed, it is therefore not surprising that a comprehensive review of published studies of gun control, released in November 2004 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was unable to determine any reliable statistically significant effect resulting from such laws, although the authors suggest that further study may provide more conclusive information.
Thirty-nine U.S. states have passed "shall issue" concealed carry legislation of one form or another. In these states, law-abiding citizens (usually after giving evidence of completing a training course) may carry handguns on their person for self-protection. Other states and some cities such as New York may issue permits. Only Illinois, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia have explicit legislation forbidding personal carry. Vermont and Alaska do not require permits to carry concealed weapons, although Alaska retains a shall issue permit process for reciprocity purposes with other states.
Many supporters of gun-rights consider self-defense to be a fundamental and inalienable human right and believe that firearms are an important tool in the exercise of this right. They consider the prohibition of an effective means of self defense to be unethical. For instance, in Thomas Jefferson’s "Commonplace Book," a quote from Cesare Beccaria reads, "laws that forbid the carrying of arms ... disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes ... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man."[52][85][86]
Domestic violence
Gun control advocates argue that the strongest evidence linking availability of guns to injury and mortality rates comes in studies of domestic violence, most often referring to the series of studies by Arthur Kellermann. In response to public suggestions by some advocates of firearms for home defense, that homeowners were at high risk of injury from home invasions and would be wise to acquire a firearm for purposes of protection, Kellermann investigated the circumstances surrounding all in-home homicides in three cities of about half a million population each over five years, and found that the risk of a homicide was in fact slightly higher in homes where a handgun was present, rather than lower. From the details of the homicides he concluded that the risk of a crime of passion or other domestic dispute ending in a fatal injury was much higher when a gun was readily available (essentially all the increased risk being in homes where a handgun was kept loaded and unlocked), compared to a lower rate of fatality in domestic violence not involving a firearm. This increase in mortality, he postulated, was large enough to overwhelm any protective effect the presence of a gun might have by deterring or defending against burglaries or home invasions, which occurred much less frequently. The increased risk averaged over all homes containing guns was similar in size to that correlated with an individual with a criminal record living in the home, but substantially less than that associated with demographic factors known to be risks for violence, such as renting a home versus ownership, or living alone versus with others.[87]
Critics of Kellermann's work and its use by advocates of gun control point out that since it deliberately ignores crimes of violence occurring outside the home (Kellermann states at the outset that the characteristics of such homicides are much more complex and ambiguous, and would be virtually impossible to classify rigorously enough), it is more directly a study of domestic violence than of gun ownership. Kellermann does in fact include in the conclusion of his 1993 paper several paragraphs referring to the need for further study of domestic violence and its causes and prevention. Researchers John Lott, Gary Kleck and many others dispute Kellermann's work.[88][89][90][91]
Kleck showed that no more than a handful of the homicides that Kellermann studied were committed with guns belonging to the victim or members of his or her household, and thus it was implausible that victim household gun ownership contributed to their homicide. Instead, the association that Kellermann found between gun ownership and victimization merely reflected the widely accepted notion that people who live in more dangerous circumstances are more likely to be murdered, but also were more likely to have acquired guns for self-protection prior to their death[92] Kleck and others argue that guns being used to protect property, save lives, and deter crime without killing the criminal accounts for the large majority of defensive gun uses.[93][94][95]
Armed forces' reserves and reservist training
In several countries, such as in Finland, the firearm politics and gun control is directly linked on the armed forces' reserves and reservist training. This is especially true in countries which base their armies on conscription; since every able-bodied male basically is a soldier, he is expected to be able to handle the gun reasonably and be able to practice for the time of need.
Switzerland is a noted example of a country in which, due to the country's conscription and militia traditions, firearm ownership is widespread. Owing to Switzerland's history, all able-bodied male Swiss citizens aged between 21 and 50 (55 for officers) are issued assault rifles and ammunition in order to perform their annual military obligations. Because of this, Switzerland is one of the few nations in the world with a higher rate of firearm ownership than the United States.[96] Also, Switzerland has a relatively low rate of gun crime.[96] The comparatively low level of violent crime, despite the liberal gun laws, is demonstrated by the fact that Swiss politicians rarely have the same level of police protection as their counterparts in the United States and other countries, as was noted following the fatal shooting of several government officials in the Swiss canton of Zug in September 2001.[97] According to many historians, Switzerland's militia tradition of "every man a soldier" contributed to the preservation of its neutrality during the Second World War, when it was not invaded by Nazi Germany. Switzerland was not invaded because the military cost to the Nazis would have been too high,[98][99][100] although this is meanwhile considered a legend regarding the existence of detailed invasion plans, which rated the Swiss defense capacity as overall low.[101][102]
Civil rights
Jeff Snyder is perhaps the best known spokesman for the view that gun possession is a civil right, and that therefore arguments about whether gun restrictions reduce or increase violent crime are beside the point: "I am not here engaged in...recommending...policy prescriptions on the basis of the promised or probable results [on crime]...Thus these essays are not fundamentally about guns at all. They are, foremost, about...the kind of people we intend to be...and the ethical and political consequences of decisions [to control firearms]."[103] He terms the main principle behind gun control "the instrumental theory of salvation:" that, lacking the ability to change the violent intent in criminals, we often shift focus to the instrument in an attempt to "limit our ability to hurt ourselves, and one another."[104] His work discusses the consequences that flow from conditioning the liberties of all citizens upon the behavior of criminals.
Some of the earliest gun-control legislation at the state level were the "black codes" that replaced the "slave codes" after the Civil War, attempting to prevent blacks' having access to the full rights of citizens, including the right to keep and bear arms.[105] Laws of this type later used racially neutral language to survive legal challenge, but were expected to be enforced against blacks rather than whites.[106]
A favorite target of gun control is so-called "junk guns," which are generally cheaper and therefore more accessible to the poor. However, some civil rights organizations favor tighter gun regulations. In 2003, the NAACP filed suit against 45 gun manufacturers for creating what it called a "public nuisance" through the "negligent marketing" of handguns, which included models commonly described as Saturday night specials. The suit alleged that handgun manufacturers and distributors were guilty of marketing guns in a way that encouraged violence in black and Hispanic neighborhoods. "The gun industry has refused to take even basic measures to keep criminals and prohibited persons from obtaining firearms," NAACP President/CEO Kweisi Mfume said. "The industry must be as responsible as any other and it must stop dumping firearms in over-saturated markets. The obvious result of dumping guns is that they will increasingly find their way into the hands of criminals."[107]
The NAACP lawsuit was dismissed in 2003.[108] It, and several similar suits—some brought by municipalities seeking re-imbursement for medical costs associated with criminal shootings—were portrayed by gun-rights groups as "nuisance suits," aimed at driving gun manufacturers (especially smaller firms) out of business through court costs alone, as damage awards were not expected.[109] These suits prompted the passage of the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act in October, 2005.
Martin Luther King said, "By our readiness to allow arms to be purchased at will and fired at whim... we have created an atmosphere in which violence and hatred have become popular pastimes."[110]
Inversely, the Dalai Lama said "If someone has a gun and is trying to kill you, it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun." (May 15, 2001, The Seattle Times) speaking at the "Educating Heart Summit" in Portland, Oregon, when asked by a girl how to react when a shooter takes aim at a classmate.
Civic duty
Some proponents of private gun ownership argue that an armed citizens' militia can help deter crime and tyranny, as police are primarily a reactive force whose main loyalty is to the government which pays their wages. The Militia Information Service (MIS) contends that gun ownership is a civic duty in the context of membership in the militia, much like voting, neither of which they believe should be restricted to government officials in a true democracy.[111] MIS also states that the people need to maintain the power of the sword so they can fulfil their duty, implicit in the social contract, to protect the rights and liberties of their fellow citizens, much as individual citizens have a legal and ethical duty to protect dependents under their care, such as a child, elderly parent, or disabled spouse.[112]
Statistics
Private ownership of guns
Private ownership of guns and their relationship to domestic violence casualties is a significant variable used for political leverage in the policy debate. While many shootings occurring in the course of a mutual argument of passion, others occur where a partner or family member of a "romantic" or familial relationship, who is an ongoing victim of domestic physical abuse or sexual abuse, uses the force of a firearm in self-defense action against a perpetrator who also happens to be known to or related to the victim. As a corollary, in such policy advertising campaigns, the comparison of "domestic" gun casualties is usually not accompanied by murder and assault prosecution numbers stemming from the shootings occurring in that context. In many of the latter cases, the victim firing in self-defense is frequently a woman or youth victim of a more physically powerful abuser. In those situations gun rights advocates argue that the firearm arguably becomes an equalizer against the lethal and disabling force frequently exercised by the abusers.[113]
In 2002 in the U.S., 1,202 women were killed by their intimate partners, accounting for 30 percent of the 4006 women murdered that year. A total of 700 women were killed by intimate partners using guns.[114] The same year, 175 men were killed by intimate partners.[115]
Many gun control opponents point to statistics in advertising campaigns purporting that "approximately 9 or so children are killed by people discharging firearms every day across the US,"[116] and argue that this statistic is seldom accompanied by a differentiation of those children killed by individuals from unintentional discharges and stray bullets, and of those "children," under the age of majority—which is 18-21 in the U.S.—who are killed while acting as aggressors in street gang related mutual combat or while committing crimes,[117][118] many of which are seen as arising from the War on Drugs. There is further controversy regarding courts, trials, and the resulting sentences of these mostly "young men" as adults despite them not having reached the age of consent. A significant number of gun related deaths occur through suicide.
According to statistics available from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, of nearly 31,000 firearm-related deaths in 2005, suicides account for 55 percent of deaths in the United States whereas homicides account for 40 percent of deaths, accidents account for three percent, and the remaining two percent were legal killings. Public Health researchers state that the likelihood of someone dying from suicide or homicide is less in homes where guns are present.[119]
Gun Safety and Gun Laws
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The neutrality of this section is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (March 2009) |
The importance of gun safety education has a mitigating effect on the occurrence of accidental discharges involving children. So much importance is not placed upon the vicarious liability case law assigning strict liability to the gun owner for firearms casualties occurring when a careless gun owner loses proper custody and control of a firearm.
In an argument against gun control, the National Center for Policy Analysis, a non-profit conservative think tank, reported the following statistics:[120]
- New Jersey adopted what sponsors described as "the most stringent gun law" in the nation in 1966; two years later the murder rate was up 46% and the reported robbery rate had nearly doubled.
- In 1968, Hawaii imposed a series of increasingly harsh measures and its murder rate tripled from a low of 2.4 per 100,000 in 1968 to 7.2 by 1977.
- In 1976, Washington, D.C., enacted one of the most restrictive gun control laws in the nation. Since then, the city's murder rate has risen 134% while the national murder rate has dropped 2%.
In addition:
- Over 50% of American households own guns, despite government statistics from 1994 showing the number is approximately 35%, because guns not listed on any government roll were not counted during the gathering of data.[121]
- Evanston, Illinois, a Chicago suburb of 75,000 residents, became the largest town to ban handgun ownership in September 1982 but experienced no decline in violent crime. It has subsequently ended its ban as a result of the District of Columbia v. Heller Supreme Court case, upon a federal lawsuit by the National Rifle Association being filed the day after Heller was entered.
- Among the 15 states with the highest homicide rates, 10 have restrictive or very restrictive gun laws.[122]
- Twenty percent of U.S. homicides occur in four cities with just 6% of the population—New York, Chicago, Detroit, and Washington, D.C.—and each has or, in the cases of Detroit (until 2001) and D.C. (2008) had, a requirement for a licence on private handguns or an effective outright ban (in the case of Chicago).[123]
- In England, Wales and Scotland, the private ownership of most handguns was banned in 1997 following a gun massacre at a school in Dunblane and an earlier gun massacre in Hungerford in which the combined deaths was 35 and injured 30. Gun ownership and gun crime was already at a low level, which made these slaughters particularly concerning. Only an estimated 57,000 people —0.1% of the population owned such weapons prior to the ban.[124] In the UK, only 8 per cent of all criminal homicides are committed with a firearm of any kind.[125] In 2005/6 the number of such deaths in England and Wales (population 53.3 million) was just 50, a reduction of 36 per cent on the year before and lower than at any time since 1998/9. The lowest rate of gun crime was in 2004/4 whilst the highest was in 1994.[citation needed] There was, however, a noticeable temporary increase in gun crime in the years immediately after the ban, though this has since fallen back. The reason for the increase has not been investigated thoroughly but it is thought that 3 factors may have raised the number of guns in circulation. These are, the reduction in gun crime in Northern Ireland (which led to guns coming from there to the criminal black market in England); guns (official issue or confiscated) acquired by military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan; and guns coming from Eastern Europe after the fall of the iron curtain.[citation needed] Firearm injuries in England and Wales also noticeably increased in this time.[126] In 2005-06, of 5,001 such injuries, 3,474 (69%) were defined as "slight," and a further 965 (19%) involved the "firearm" being used as a blunt instrument. Twenty-four percent of injuries were caused with air guns, and 32% with "imitation firearms" (including airsoft guns).[127] Since 1998, the number of fatal shootings has varied between 49 and 97, and was 50 in 2005. In Scotland the picture has been more varied with no pattern of rise or fall appearing.[citation needed]
- Violent crime accelerated in Jamaica after handguns were heavily restricted and a special Gun Court established.[128] However, a high proportion of the illegal guns in Jamaica can be attributed to guns smuggled in from the United states, where they are more freely available.[129]
The Federal Bureau of Investigation's annual Uniform Crime Report ranking of cities over 40,000 in population by violent crime rates (per 100,000 population) finds that the ten cities with the highest violent crime rates for 2003 include three cities in the very strict state of New Jersey, one in the fairly restrictive state of Massachusetts.
| # | City | State |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saginaw | MI |
| 2 | Irvington | NJ |
| 3 | Camden | NJ |
| 4 | Alexandria | LA |
| 5 | Detroit | MI |
| 6 | East Orange | NJ |
| 7 | Atlanta | GA |
| 8 | Springfield | MA |
| 9 | Fort Myers | FL |
| 10 | Miami | FL |
See also
- Ballistic fingerprinting
- Concealed carry
- Gun violence and crime
- Gun violence in the United States
- Hoplophobia
- One handgun a month law
- Open carry
- Political arguments of gun politics in the United States
- Right to arms
- School shootings
Gun political groups
- American Hunters and Shooters Association
- Americans for Democratic Action
- Americans for Gun Safety Foundation
- Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
- British Association for Shooting and Conservation
- Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
- Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
- Gun Control Australia
- Gun Owners of America
- Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership
- Law Enforcement Alliance of America
- League of Women Voters
- Liberty Belles
- Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition
- National Rifle Association of the United States
- Pink Pistols
- Schweizerischer Schützenverein
- Second Amendment Foundation
- Second Amendment Sisters
- Students for Concealed Carry on Campus
- Sporting Shooters Association of Australia
References
- ^ Spitzer, Donald J.,The Politics of Gun Control, p. 1. Chatham House Publishers, Inc., 1995.
- ^ Tracing Illegal Small Arms: An ATF Program US State Department.
- ^ a b c d "Brazilians reject gun sales ban". BBCNEWS. October 24, 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4368598.stm. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
- ^ a b c Hearn, Kelly (October 5, 2005). "The NRA Takes on Gun Control– in Brazil". Alternet. http://www.alternet.org/story/27279/. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
- ^ a b Associated Press (October 23, 2005). "Brazilians Block Gun Ban". Fox News. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,173154,00.html. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
- ^ a b c d Rohter, Larry (October 20, 2005). "Gun-Happy Brazil Hotly Debates a Nationwide Ban". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/20/international/americas/20brazil.html. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
- ^ Patrick Grady, Larry Comeau (2006-01-29). "What About the Gun Registry?". Global Economics Ltd.. http://global-economics.ca/gunregistry.htm.
- ^ RCMP. "Licensing: Canadian Firearms Program". Government of Canada. http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/cfp-pcaf/information/lic-per-eng.htm. Retrieved 2009-09-21.
- ^ RCMP. "List of Non-Restricted, Restricted, and Prohibited Firearms". Government of Canada. http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/cfp-pcaf/fs-fd/rp-eng.htm. Retrieved 2009-09-22.
- ^ "China Reiterates Stance on Gun Control". http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-04/21/content_856308.htm.
- ^ "PM gunning for a law change". Herald Sun. 3 July 2008. http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23961428-5012752,00.html.
- ^ "JURIST - Paper Chase: EU lawmakers seek tougher gun control rules". http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2007/11/eu-lawmakers-seek-tougher-gun-control.php. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
- ^ "EU legislators push tougher gun controls - International Herald Tribune". http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/29/europe/union.php. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
- ^ Cukier, Wendy; Antoine Chapdelaine, (April 2001). "Small Arms: A Major Public Health Hazard". Medicine & Global Survival (See Figure 2 Firearms possession and intentional firearm deaths) Vol. 7 (No. 1). http://www.ippnw.org/Resources/MGS/V7N1Cukier.pdf. Retrieved 2009-03-18.
- ^ Violent Crime Overview, Homicide and Gun Crime 2004/2005, Home Office, p. 72 (Fig 3.1), http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb0206.pdf.
- ^ Violent Crime Overview, Homicide and Gun Crime 2004/2005, Home Office, p. 82 (Table 3.02), http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb0206.pdf.
- ^ Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 (c. 5).
- ^ [1] Article 3, p. 75.
- ^ Firearms Enquiries.
- ^ http://www.politics.co.uk/briefings-guides/issue-briefs/domestic-policy/crime/weapons/gun-crime-$477769.htm
- ^ Kopel, David (April 2007). "Weapons of War : To Your Tents, O Israel". Liberty 21 (4): 31-36. http://libertyunbound.com/archive/2007_04/kopel-israel.html. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
- ^ a b Squires, Peter (2000). Gun culture or gun control?: firearms, violence and society. New York: Routledge. p. 184. ISBN 0-415-17086-9. "...Japanese firearm controls are reportedly strict...but enforcement of gun control policy is said to be complex and inefficient."
- ^ "Japan faces up to a world of gun crime". December 23, 2007. http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fd20071223pb.html. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
- ^ D Bayley, Forces of Order: Police Behavior in Japan and the United States (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976), Art 4, 23.
- ^ "LDP's platform to call for a new Constitution". http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20070524a3.html. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
- ^ "CNW Group". http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/January2008/18/c2417.html. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
- ^ "US guns arm Mexico's drug wars". http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0719/p01s01-woam.html?page=1. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
- ^ "U.S., Mexico set sights on stopping flow of weapons to cartels". http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/world/mexico/stories/DN-agmexico_17int.ART.North.Edition1.3736b8f.html. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
- ^ a b "International perspectives on gun conrol". http://www.davekopel.com/2a/LawRev/lrnylstk.htm. Retrieved 2008-04-30.
- ^ The Swiss Army at Europeforvisitors.com.
- ^ Swiss Miss, John R. Lott writing for The National Review, October 2, 2003.
- ^ "Gun laws under fire after latest shooting". Swissinfo. 27 November 2007. http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/search/Result.html?siteSect=882&sid=8470114.
- ^ "A look inside America's gun culture.". http://www.abc.net.au/news/indepth/featureitems/s1899524.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
- ^ "Oversight of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Part 2: Gun Show Enforcement" (PDF). Hearings before the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, 109th Congress, 2d Session, February 28, 2006. http://www.judiciary.house.gov/media/pdfs/bouchard022806.pdf.
- ^ Nugent, Ted (2007-04-20). "Gun-free zones are recipe for disaster". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/04/19/commentary.nugent/index.html. Retrieved 2007-04-28.
- ^ "Before Recent Shootings, Gun-Control Support Was Fading". http://www.gallup.com/poll/117361/Support-Gun-Control-Laws-Time-Lows.aspx. Retrieved 2009-05-17.
- ^ "[hhttp://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/08/gun.control.poll/index.html Poll: Fewer Americans support stricter gun control laws]". hhttp://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/08/gun.control.poll/index.html. Retrieved 2009-05-17.
- ^ Homegrown Gun Politics Plays Well With Voters, Washington Post, 17 May 2007.
- ^ Cook, Philip J., Jens Ludwig (2000). "Chapter 3". Gun Violence: The Real Costs. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-513793-0.
- ^ Spitzer, Robert J. (1995). The politics of gun control. New York: Chatham House. 13–15. ISBN 1-56643-022-4.
- ^ "Harris Interactive | The Harris Poll - Majority in U.S. Favors Stricter Gun Control – But Gun Control Is Not Likely To Be Much of an Issue in Upcoming Presidential Election". Harrisinteractive.com. http://www.harrisinteractive.com/harris_poll/index.asp?PID=471. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
- ^ Fried, Joseph, Democrats and Republicans - Rhetoric and Reality (New York: Algora Publishing, 2008), 50-1.
- ^ "Guns". Gallup. 2007. http://www.gallup.com/poll/1645/Guns.aspx. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
- ^ The statistic is taken from FBI reports on crime in 2005 at FBI Web site. According to the FBI, 10,100 murders in 2005 were committed with firearms.
- ^ Kleck, Gary. "Targeting Guns: Firearms and their control". http://books.google.com/books?id=xJ3Y2-CHYfMC&pg=PA150&lpg=PA150&dq=kleck+defensive+uses&source=web&ots=sBH0GjS91L&sig=c842L8muQGM2V_9nZNbjveA4kY8#PPA151,M1. Retrieved 2008-01-24.
- ^ LaPierre, Wayne (1994). Guns, Crime, and Freedom. Regnery Publishing, Inc., Washington, DC. p. 23.
- ^ Suter, E.A. (1992). "Firearms and the killing threshold (Letter)". New England Journal of Medicine 326: 1159. PMID 1552925..
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- Kates, D.B. (1991). "The value of civilian handgun possession as a deterrent to crime or a defense against crime". American Journal of Criminal Law 18: 113–167. NCJ 132948.
- "Go ahead, make our day". The New Republic. February 22, 1988. pp. 7-9.
- "Do guns save lives?". Time. August 12, 1988. pp. 25-26.
- "Are we "a nation of cowards"?". Newsweek. November 15, 1993. pp. 93-94.
- Kopel, D.B. (1993). Hold your fire: gun control won't stop rising violence. 63. Policy Review. pp. 58–65. NCJ 153748.
-
- ^ Edgar A. Suter, MD. "Guns in the Medical Literature - A Failure of Peer Review". http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/Suter/med-lit.html.
- ^ Miller, Matthew, Deborah Azrael, and David Hemenway (December 2002). "Rates of Household Firearm Ownership and Homicide Across US Regions and States, 1988–1997". American Journal of Public Health. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1447364. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
- ^ "Bureau of Justice Statistics Selected Findings" (PDF). http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/guic.pdf. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
- ^ Licensing and Registration Statutes, Hamline Law Review - Symposium on Firearms Legislation and Litigation, Vol. 6, No. 2. 1983.
- ^ a b Story,Joseph, A Familiar Exposition of the Constitution of the United States(1986) Regnery Gateway, Chicago, Illinois, pp. 319-320, ISBN 0-89526-796-9.
- ^ Hardy,David T. The origins and Development of the Second Amendment(1986), Blacksmith Corp., Chino Valley, Arizona, pp. 64-93, ISBN 0-941540-13-8.
- ^ Halbrook, Stephen P. That Every Man be Armed--The Evolution of a Constitutional Right(1987), The University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico, pp. 55-87, ISBN 0-8263-0868-6.
- ^ "The Federal Government’s Brief in the D.C. Gun Ban Case: A Glass That Is More Than Half Full". http://www.heritage.org/Research/LegalIssues/wm1775.cfm#_ftn7. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
- ^ The ATF National Firearms Act Handbook.
- ^ The Gun Control Act of 1968, Public Law 90-618, with subsequent amendments including the Firearm Owners Protection Act.
- ^ "For Sale: "MP5's in .40 S&W" MassCops.com, 12/30/04.
- ^ [2] Heckler & Koch MP5 A3, listing #976963191, GunsAmerica.com.
- ^ Kruschke, Earl R. (1995). Gun control: a reference handbook. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO. p. 85. ISBN 0-87436-695-X.
- ^ District of Columbia v Heller opinion.
- ^ See also Parker v District of Columbia, 478 F.3d 370 (D.C. Cir. 2007).
- ^ Id. "The Second Amendment right to bear arms does not apply to: certain individuals (e.g. felons, mentally ill persons), broad classes of arms, and a wide variety of situations. Under the Solicitor General's theory, the government would have broad discretion to carve out exceptions".
- ^ Gun Ownership, Suicide and Homicide: An International Perspective, Martin Killias.
- ^ Firearm-related deaths in the United States and 35 other high- and upper-middle income countries, EG Krug, KE Powell and LL Dahlberg, 1998.
- ^ [|Martin Killias] (1993). "Gun Ownership, Suicide and Homicide: An International Perspective" (PDF). http://www.unicri.it/wwk/publications/books/series/understanding/19_GUN_OWNERSHIP.pdf. Retrieved 2008-01-16. "The present study, based on a sample of eighteen countries, confirms the results of previous work based on the 14 countries surveyed during the first International Crime Survey. Strong correlations were found between gun ownership and gun-related as well as total suicide, but that the overall rate of suicide using firearms is low, and homicide rates. Widespread gun ownership has not been found to reduce the likelihood of fatal events committed with other means. Thus, people do not turn to knives and other potentially lethal instruments less often when more guns are available,"
- ^ a b Killias, van Kesteren, and Rindlisbacher, "Guns, violent crime, and suicide in 21 countries"Canadian Journal of Criminology, October 2001, http://rechten.uvt.nl/icvs/pdffiles/Guns_Killias_vanKesteren.pdf.
- ^ Rich, et al.: "Guns and suicide: possible effects of some specific legislation" Am J Psychiatry 1990; 147:342-346.
- ^ Rummel,RJ, Death by Government (1994) Transaction Publishers, New Jersey, ISBN 1-56000-145-3.
- ^ Simkin, J, Zelman, and Rice, A, Lethal Laws: Gun Control is the Key to Genocide-- Documentary Proof that Enforcement of Gun Control Laws Clears the way for Governments to Commit Genocide, Jews for the Preservation of Firearm Ownership, Inc.,1994, ISBN 0-9642304-0-2.
- ^ Courtois,S, Werth, N, Panne, J-L, et al., The Black Book of Communism--Crimes, Terror, Repression(1999), Harvard University Press, Cambridge Massachusetts, ISBN 0-674-07608-7.
- ^ a b Simkin, J, Zelman, and Rice, A, Lethal Laws: Gun Control is the Key to Genocide-- Documentary Proof that Enforcement of Gun Control Laws Clears the way for Governments to Commit Genocide, Jews for the Preservation of Firearm Ownership, Inc.,1994, pp. 149-186, ISBN 0-9642304-0-2.
- ^ a b Rummel,RJ, Death by Government (1994) Transaction Publishers, New Jersey, pp. 111-122, ISBN 1-56000-145-3.
- ^ a b Halbrook, Stephen P. (2000) "Nazi Firearms Law and the Disarming of the German Jews." Arizona Journal of International and Comparative Law, Vol 17. No. 3. p. 528.
- ^ a b Harcourt, Bernard E (2004) "On the NRA, Adolph Hitler, Gun Registration, and the Nazi Gun Laws: Exploring the Culture Wars (A Call to Historians)", p. 22.
- ^ Kopel, David B. The Samurai, the Mountie, and the Cowboy--Should America Adopt the Gun Controls of Other Democracies? (1992), Prometheus Books, New York, pp. 313,351, ISBN 0-87975-756-6.
- ^ Kleck "Crime control through the use of armed force." Social Problems Feb. 1988; Kleck and DeLone "Victim resistance and offender weapon effects in robbery" Journal of Quantitative Criminology March 1993; Tark and Kleck "Resisting Crime" Criminology November 2004.
- ^ Kleck and Sayles "Rape and Resistance" Social Problems May 1990.
- ^ Kleck, Chapter 7 in Armed, by Kleck and Don B. Kates, Jr.
- ^ Kleck, Chapter 6 in Armed, by Kleck and Don B. Kates, Jr.
- ^ Review, Political Psychology 17:2 (Jun., 1996), pp. 375-377.
- ^ Lott, John R.Jr., More Guns, Less Crime-- Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws(1998), The University of Chicago Press, Chicago Illinois, pp. 50-122, ISBN 0-226-49363-6.
- ^ Kleck and Patterson, Journal of Quantitative criminology September 1993.
- ^ Understanding Why Crime Fell in the 1990s: Four Factors that Explain the Decline and Six that Do Not, Steven D. Levitt, Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 18 No. 1, 2004].
- ^ Hardy, David T. The origins and Development of the Second Amendment(1986), Blacksmith Corp., Chino Valley, Arizona, pp. 1-78, ISBN 0-941540-13-8.
- ^ Halbrook, Stephen P. That Every Man be Armed--The Evolution of a Constitutional Right(1987), The University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico, pp. 1-88, ISBN 0-8263-0868-6.
- ^ Kellermann AL, Rivara FP, Rushforth NB, et al. Gun ownership as a risk factor for homicide in the home. N Engl J Med 1993;329(15):1084-1091.
- ^ Suter, Edgar A, Guns in the Medical Literature-- A Failure of Peer Review, Journal of the Medical Association of Georgia;83:133-152, March, 1994.
- ^ Kates DB, Schaffer HE, Lattimer JK, Murray GB, Cassem EH. Bad Medicine: Doctors and Guns in Guns– Who Should Have Them? (Ed., Kopel DB), New York, NY, Prometheus Books, 1995, pp. 233-308.
- ^ Faria MA Jr. The perversion of science and medicine (Part III): Public Health and Gun Control Research and (Part IV): The Battle Continues. Medical Sentinel 1997;2(3):81-82 and 83-86.
- ^ Kates DB, Schaffer HE, Lattimer JK, Murray GB, Cassem EH. Guns and public health: epidemic of violence or pandemic of propaganda? Tennessee Law Review 1995;62:513-596.
- ^ Kleck, Homicide Studies, February 2001.
- ^ Suter E, Waters WC, Murray GB, et al. Violence in America-- effective solutions. J Med Assoc Ga 1995;84(6):253-264.
- ^ Lott, John JR. More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws. Chicago, IL, University of Chicago Press, 1998.
- ^ Kleck G. Targeting Guns-- Firearms and Their Control. New York, NY, Aldine De Gruyter, 1997.
- ^ a b "What America can learn from Switzerland is that the best way to reduce gun misuse is to promote responsible gun ownership.", American Rifleman, February 1990.
- ^ 'Grudge' behind Swiss gun massacre, CNN, September 2001.
- ^ Poe, Richard, The Seven Myths of Gun Control(2001), Prima Publishing, California, pp. 75-83, ISBN 0-7615-2558-0.
- ^ Kopel, David B., Guns-- Who Should Have Them? (Ed., Kopel DB), New York, NY, Prometheus Books, 1995, pp. 42-43.
- ^ Kopel,David B., The Samurai, The Mountie and The Cowboy--Should America Adopt the Gun Control Laws of other Democracies? (1992) Prometheus Books, New York, pp. 278-302, ISBN 0-87975-756-6.
- ^ Urner, Klaus Die Schweiz muss noch geschluckt werden, Zürich, Verlag Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 1990, ISBN 3-85823-303-X.
- ^ Schelbert, Leo Switzerland under siege; Rockport, Maine; Picton, 2000, ISBN 0-89725-414-7.
- ^ Snyder, J: Nation of Cowards: Essays on the Ethics of Gun Control. Accurate Press, St. Louis, 2001:pp. i-ii.
- ^ ibid, p. 1.
- ^ Halbrook, SP: That Every Man be Armed: The evolution of a Constitutional Right. 2nd ed., The Independent Institute, Oakland, 1994:p. 108.
- ^ Cramer, CE: The Racist Roots of Gun Control, 1993.
- ^ Editors (Sept/Oct 1999) "NAACP causes furor by suing gun manufacturers." New Crisis.
- ^ [3] "Gun Makers Repel Lawsuit by N.A.A.C.P." New York Times, July 22, 2003.
- ^ "Reckless Lawsuits: Courts Reject Lawsuits against Gun Makers." NRA-ILA, October 16, 2003.
- ^ King Jr., Martin Luther and Clayborne Carson (2001) The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. New York: Grand Central Publishing. p. 147.
- ^ "Militia Information Service : Facts Page". http://www.militia.info/facts.html Militia Information Service. Retrieved 2009-01-01.
- ^ "Militia Information Service : Myths Page". http://www.militia.info/myths.html Militia Information Service. Retrieved 2009-01-01.
- ^ Haciendapub.com gunpage 15.
- ^ WISQARS, Injury Mortality Reports.
- ^ Bureau of Justice Statistics, Homicide Trends in the U.S.: Intimate Homicide.
- ^ med.umich.edu.
- ^ Haciendapub.com gunpage12.
- ^ Haciendapub.com gunpage 13.
- ^ "A Gun in the Home" GunCite.com, Retrieved 6 July 2009.
- ^ Reynolds, Morgan O.; Caruth, W. W., III (1992), Myths About Gun Control, National Center for Policy Analysis, ISBN 0-943802-99-7, http://www.ncpa.org/pdfs/st176.pdf.
- ^ pdf at ncjrs.gov.
- ^ Lott, John JR. More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws. Chicago, IL, University of Chicago Press, 1998, pp. 50-96, 135-138.
- ^ Reynolds, Morgan O. and Caruth, III, W.W. (1992). NCPA Policy Report No. 176: Myths About Gun Control. National Center for Policy Analysis. p. 7. ISBN 0-943802-99-7. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/st176/. "20 percent of U.S. homicides occur in four cities with just 6% of the population – New York, Chicago, Detroit, and Washington, D.C., and each has a virtual prohibition on private handguns"
- ^ paragraph 58.
- ^ Home Office statistical bulletin on Homicide and firearms offences in 2005/6.
- ^ Blair wants gun crime age reduced, BBC News, February 18, 2007.
- ^ Homicides, Firearm Offences and Intimate Violence 2005/2006 Supplementary Volume 1 to Crime in England and Wales 2005/2006).
- ^ Kopel, David B. The Samurai, the Mountie, and the Cowboy--Should America Adopt the Gun Controls of Other Democracies? (1992), Prometheus Books, New York, pp. 257-277, ISBN 0-87975-756-6.
- ^ http://www.mysinchew.com/node/26251
External links
- International Crime Survey data on gun ownership in eighteen nations
- Interactive Maps Showing Differences in U.S. Gun Control Laws
- First Reports Evaluating the Effectiveness of Strategies for Preventing Violence: Firearms Laws
- State of Florida Information For Resident and Non-Resident Concealed Weapon / Firearm License.
- Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, Guns and Violence Symposium
- Questionnaire for the Seventh United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems, covering the period 1998 - 2000
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