Guns in the US Flashcards
What are 3 arguments for more gun regulations in the US?
- kids are dying in massacres
(13 times as likely to be murdered by guns as children in other industrialised countrys) - guns claim one life every 20 minutes
-Everything else is regulated for safety
(School stairways, Windows, buses, cafeteria food, ladders, toy guns, cars but guns are by far more dangerous and aren’t regulated as serious)
What are 4 more arguments for more gun regulations in the US?
- reducing gun deaths by 1/3 would safe 10.000 lives annually
- hard to see what deterrence would be added by having more normal citizens carrying guns
- massive amounts of people die
- regulations in Australia reduced gun violence drasticly
What are 3 arguments against more gun regulations in the US?
- shooting is fun
- it won’t make a difference because “crazies” will always be able to get guns
- not going to eliminate gun deaths completely
What are 3 more arguments against more gun regulations in the US?
- if more people carried guns they would deter shooters or interrupt them
(more guns = less shootings) - schools have safety regulations to protect children from shooters
- big part of economy
What is the second Amendment ?
Legal basis for the “right of the people to keep and bear arms” (December 15, 1791)
What are the reasons for the second Amendment?
- defend yourself
- feeling of security
- symbol of strength
- symbol of pride and independence
- individual responsibility
Gun laws strenghts: minimum age to purchase arms
Shotguns or rifles and ammunition: 18 years
All other firearms: 21 years
Gun laws strenghts: restricted from purchasing/possessing
People…
- deemed a danger to society
- patients involuntarily committed to mental institutions
- with prior felony convictions + prison sentence of more than 1 year
- misdemeanors carrying sentences of more than 2 years
- who have been found guilty of unlawfully possessing or using drugs within the past year
- who have restraining orders to prevent harassment, stalking or threatening
- who have renounced their citizenship
- who have dishonorably discharged military personnel
- unauthorised migrants
- temporarily visiting the US on non-immigrant visas
Gun laws strenghts: who may sell firearms?
- need Federal Firearms License (FFL)
- at least 21 years of age
- premises for conducting business
- must alert a local law enforcement official at the time of submitting their application to the federal bureau that regulates firearms
- must fulfill the same criteria regarding their history of prior convictions and mental state
- registered FFL holder must conduct background check before handing the firearms over to its owner
Gun laws weaknesses: who may sell firearms?
-
only individuals whose “principal Motive” is to make profit via sale must obtain FFL
-> anyone can sell a gun without an FFL from their home, online, at a flea market, gun show as long they’re not conducting the sale as part of regular business activity.
-> no FFL needed for giving guns as a gift
Gun laws strenghts: Is a background check required to purchase a firearm ?
- holders of FFL are required to conduct one
- federal form (ATF 4473) checks for prior convictions and other red flags
- immediate answer: approve/ delay/ deny
( deny: need for further research for 3 business days)
Gun laws weaknesses: Is a background check required to purchase a firearm ?
The Brady law does not apply to someone who is obtaining a firearm from an individual without an FFL
-> this potentially enables guns to fall into the hands of users who might otherwise not be allowed to own a firearm
Gun laws strenghts: permit to purchase ?
- only a dozen states require purchase permits for handguns
- only 3 states require purchase permits for rifles and shotguns
Permit: pass written test + enroll in gun safety class
- these states do not recognize the “concealed carry reciprocity”
What does the concealed carry reciprocity do?
Allows gun owners licensed in one state to bring their weapon to another
Gun laws weaknesses: permit to purchase ?
Only a few of 50 states require one
Gun laws strenghts: permit to carry ?
- most states require permits to carry handguns
- no state requires a permit to carry rifles and shotguns
What does the federal government regulate ?
Who may receive or possess guns
What does the state government regulate ?
Whether residents may carry guns in public
What does ATF do ?
- administers GCA
- regulates the standards for issuing licenses to gun vendors
What does the National Firearms Act of 1934 regulate ?
- Shotguns
- rifles
- machine guns
- firearms
- mufflers and silencers
