Gun Control Laws
Gun Control: Gun Control Laws
Introduction to Gun Control Laws
The federal government and all U.S. states have some gun control laws. These laws are based on several strategies: forbidding certain types of people from obtaining any firearms; prohibiting anyone other than the police, the military, and persons with special needs from acquiring certain types of guns; and requiring purchasers to wait some period of time before purchasing a gun or gun license.
The most common gun control strategy attempts to prohibit unreliable people from obtaining guns. Federal and state laws prohibit people who have been convicted of a felony (serious crime) and other individuals deemed to be poor risks (such as those who have been involuntarily committed to a mental institution or who have a history of domestic violence) from purchasing guns. Federal law and many state laws also prohibit minors from obtaining guns.
Another gun control strategy centers around high-risk guns-that is, guns that are especially likely to be misused. Since 1934 federal law has severely restricted sale and ownership of machine guns (weapons that fire many rounds of ammunition with a single pull of a trigger) and sawed-off shotguns. The Congress of the United States judged these to be high-risk weapons. Since the late 1980s, many people have proposed adding some semiautomatic rifles and pistols to the list of restricted high-risk weapons. These guns require a separate pull of the trigger to fire each round of ammunition but can quickly fire many rounds. In 1994 a federal law prohibited the manufacture and importation of 19 types of semiautomatic guns, which were called assault weapons in the legislation, and also banned ammunition magazines capable of holding more than ten rounds of ammunition.
The federal ban on assault weapons contained an exception for weapons suitable for hunting and sporting purposes. After the law was enacted, lawmakers expressed concern that foreign gun manufacturers were making minor modifications to assault weapons in order to qualify for this exception, thus circumventing the restrictions on the weapons’ importation. In 1997 the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms conducted a review of imported military-style weapons modified to meet the sporting and hunting purposes exception. In 1998 the agency announced that modified semiautomatic rifles that retained the ability to accept large-capacity military magazines do not meet the criteria for the sporting purposes exception.
In 2004 the assault weapons ban expired, and the U.S. Congress did not renew it. Bans on assault weapons in California and several other states remained in effect. The expiration of the federal assault weapons ban became an issue during the 2004 presidential election, and gun control advocates were expected to press for a renewal of the ban after the election.
Gun control advocates have also proposed laws treating handguns (revolvers and pistols) as special high-risk weapons that ordinary citizens should not own. These proposals are controversial. Their backers argue that handguns are easily concealed and are much more likely to be used in crime than are rifles and shotguns. Opponents of handgun restrictions argue that taking handguns from law-abiding citizens would not prevent the possession of guns by criminals. Despite this controversy, some localities and states have laws that stringently restrict private ownership of handguns.
Other strategies for controlling guns require the licensing of guns or waiting periods before purchasing a gun. These strategies are designed to allow time for law enforcement officials to make sure that a buyer is not prohibited from owning a gun. Some U.S. states have adopted laws based on these strategies, and in 1993, after a seven-year battle, the U.S. Congress passed the Brady Bill, named after former White House press secretary James Brady. Brady and his wife, Sarah, became proponents of gun control after Brady was shot and seriously wounded during a 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan. They formed the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, based in Washington, D.C.
The so-called Brady Law, which went into effect in 1994, initially provided a five-day waiting period to allow local law enforcement officials to make sure the purchaser is not disqualified from owning a handgun. The law also established licensing fees. In 1998 a new computerized verification system replaced the five-day waiting period requirement. Under the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) administered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), firearms dealers submit the names of potential buyers into the system and can more quickly ascertain whether the sale may proceed. ” (1)
Resources
Notes and References
- Information about Gun Control Laws in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia
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