I can't begin to imagine the heartache parents and other family members of the victims must be going through right now. The entire ordeal is utterly senseless, one where there will always be more questions than answers. I read online earlier today that the FBI investigated the computers and home of Adan Lanza, who had walked into Sandy Hills with three guns to commit the murders he had planned out. Lanza had supposedly smashed all his computers at his house before he had left for the school in order to limit the amount of information people could find out about him later. The FBI still expects to retrieve at least some of the data stored on Lanza's computers in order to eventually find out Lanza's motivations for his actions.
What I really wanted to talk about was the demand for stronger gun laws from the general public in light of this horrific event. I don't own a gun myself, and frankly I hope the day never comes when I feel interested or compelled into buying one. I think it's in the best interest of this country for private citizens to have the option of buying guns, particularly as a means of self-defense. I also realize that it's human nature to react with feelings of anger and fear when people like Adam Lanza show up in an elementary school with several guns in hand, looking for targets.
Right now you're probably wondering where I'm going with all this. My point is I don't think the general American public has much idea of the kinds of gun laws we already have in place, much less what kinds of new laws that could be passed to prevent people like Adam Lanza in the future. I don't deny that the system is clearly in need of a shake up, considering Lanza got a hold of the guns he had in hand. But consider this: What do you, dear reader, know about American gun laws? What could the American government realistically do to strengthen the gun laws that already exist?
Full disclosure: I didn't even know very much about gun laws prior to researching them online while putting together this post. In reading them over, it's pretty clear the U.S. government already has some strict federal laws in place to monitor and control which private citizens can own a gun in this country. The first thing most pro-gun advocates like to cite is the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which reads:
"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."
Okay, so the Government cannot infringe upon the people who want to buy and keep a gun in their houses. I think it's about there where most Americans think gun laws end. The ever so small sample size of the friends I have on Facebook showed me over the weekend that Americans think people who are mentally handicapped or emotionally unstable can buy a gun without much to stop them.
Wrong.
The Gun Control Act of 1968 was passed following the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King, Jr. The act was specifically designed to curtail the sale of firearms to certain individuals. The following excerpt is probably the most pertinent text:
"(d) It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or otherwise dispose of any firearm or ammunition to any person knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that such person - (1) is under indictment for, or has been convicted in any court of, a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year (2) is a fugitive from justice; (3) is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)); (4) has been adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to any mental institution; (5) who, being an alien - (A) is illegally or unlawfully in the United States; or (B) except as provided in subsection (y)(2), has been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa (as that term is defined in section 101(a)(26) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(26))); (6) who (!2) has been discharged from the Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions; (7) who, having been a citizen of the United States, has renounced his citizenship; (8) is subject to a court order that restrains such person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner of such person or child of such intimate partner or person, or engaging in other conduct that would place an intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily injury to the partner or child, except that this paragraph shall only apply to a court order that - (A) was issued after a hearing of which such person received actual notice, and at which such person had the opportunity to participate; and (B)(i) includes a finding that such person represents a credible threat to the physical safety of such intimate partner or child; or (ii) by its terms explicitly prohibits the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against such intimate partner or child that would reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury; or (9) has been convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence."
Based off that, here's the types of people we can cross off the list who can legally buy guns: People convicted of crimes punishable by jail terms of over one year; fugitives from the law; drug addicts; anyone who had previously been a patient in a mental institution; illegal aliens; people dishonorably discharged from the military; anyone who had a restraining order placed on them by a spouse or significant other; or someone convicted of a crime involving domestic violence.
There's more, though. The Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 prohibits individuals from carrying firearms around areas clearly marked as school zones. Of course, Lanza clearly didn't let this law stop him from carrying out his plans, and he wouldn't be the first violator of this law either. Short of something like metal detectors being installed in schools across the country, I don't know how society would be able to put a stop to all schools preventing any gun showing up on any campus. If the day ever comes when such a thing is necessary, we'll all be living in fear versus freedom.
One other federal law is worth mentioning. The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act took effect in 1994, and it requires federal background checks to be conducted on all purchasers of firearms from licensed dealers across the country. It also prohibits the shipment or transportation of firearms by people under similar conditions to those who also apply to the Gun Control Act, meaning people who are drug addicts, fugitives from the law, illegal aliens, and the like cannot transport or ship weapons that have been purchased.
Having said all that, there are a few things to bear in mind here. First, these are all federal laws, so state laws will probably vary a little bit from one another. In Maryland, the Maryland State Police keeps a registry of all legal handguns sold in the state, and anytime any gun in that registry is sold, a ballistics database keeps track of who owns which gun. Interestingly enough, Connecticut already has some of the strictest gun laws in the country according to this graph.
Second, all these laws are great in logic and theory, but there are still thousands of illegal arms sales conducted across the country. Gangs, drug dealers, and other criminals still find ways to transport and obtain guns illegally, so the system is hardly perfect. It's a sad but honest truth that the FBI can't stop everyone.
Lastly, people like Adam Lanza will still find a way to get a gun. From what little has been established about him thus far, he did not suffer from any diagnosed mental illness, so he could very possibly have legally purchased whatever guns he had in his possession. Nothing has been confirmed - to my knowledge at least - whether Lanza's mother knew he had those guns.
Does any of this mean we should keep things the way they are? Of course not. Twenty children and six adults didn't have to die this past Friday, and the terrible event showed the system we have in place isn't working (especially when you take into account the shooting in Denver during a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises in July as well). However, I also don't want to live in a country where malls, schools, movie theaters, and stadiums all have metal detectors at each entrance either. There has to be a happy medium somewhere in between, while still allowing the majority of citizens the option to purchase a gun if they choose to do so, but also preventing other atrocities like Sandy Hook from happening again.
There's another angle to this tragedy which I'll talk about in a separate post. The talk of stricter gun laws is only one side that has people worked up after the Sandy Hook shooting, and the other side is just as emotionally charged. For now, I hope anyone who reads this post realizes the government has taken steps to control the sales of firearms for quite a while now.
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