- Statistics on Gun Ownership
- 40% of all US homes have guns
- 81% of Americans say that gun control will be an important issue in determining which Congressional candidate to vote for.
- 91% of Americans say that there should be at least minor restrictions on gun ownership;
- 57% of Americans say that there should be major restrictions or a ban.
- Child-Safety Locks
- In 1996, 140 children died after being accidentally shot; in 2012 the figure was 259 with comparable numbers in between.
- About 1,500 children are hurt by guns every year.
- "Trigger Locks" require entering a combination to use the gun (or some other locking method); they are intended to reduce inadvertent use by children or other unauthorized users.
- Gun control
- Advocates of gun control cite the large number of people killed in gun-based homicides each year: over 8,000 per year, peaking at 14,000 in 1993.
- Over 100,000 people are shot each year in the U.S.; 72% of all violent killings use guns as the weapon.
- Compared to Japan, where gun laws are very strict regarding both ownership and punishment, only 4 people were killed by guns in 2012. Japan has a smaller population, but even counting that, the per capita death rate is 1,000 times higher in the United States.
- Background Checks
- The "Gun-Show Loophole" means that there are no background checks when purchasing guns in a private transaction.
- Guns sold at gun shows through dealers ARE subject to background checks; only those sold privately are not.
- Right to Bear Arms
- The Supreme Court ruled in 1939, in a case called "US v. Miller," that the 2nd amendment only protects guns suitable for a well-regulated militia -- for example, sawed-off shotguns can be banned because they're not "ordinary military equipment".
- Since 1939, the Supreme Court has not heard any further 2nd amendment cases; the most recent ruling prior to “Heller”, in 1997, overturned part of the 1993 Brady Bill, but did not address 2nd amendment rights.
- “Heller” refers to a ruling on the issue of “individual rights”. The Supreme Court ruled, in the 2008 case called “District of Columbia v. Heller”, that the 2nd Amendment does define an individual right to gun ownership, as opposed to a “collective right” for a state-run and state-armed National Guard.
- Much discretion was left to the states and to Congress, but Heller opens up the issue to further Supreme Court cases.
- Hence, gun control issues are still primarily the subject of Congressional legislation.
- Federal discussions on gun control often focus on the “D.C. handgun ban” because Congress has direct control over the gun laws of the District of Columbia. One such law was at issue in the Heller case.