After every high-profile shooting the calls to "Do Something!" begin immediately. Most of the proposals have little to do with effective solutions to gun-related deaths, and too many create barriers for law-abiding gun owners. Here are some proposals that address gun-related violence while upholding the rights of law-abiding citizens to own firearms. Elected officials who claim to support gun ownership rights should be pushing these kinds of solutions instead of back-pedaling on Second Amendment rights.
1. Since the
majority of deaths by firearm are suicide (60%), increase funding for mental
health services and suicide prevention campaigns especially in vulnerable
communities such as veterans.
2.
Enforce the laws. This includes holding government agencies
accountable to update the NICS databased used for background checks in a timely
manner and add more reporting criteria associated with criminal activity.
3.
Enforce the laws. The majority of gun-related deaths besides suicide
stems from organized crime. Empower and
fund law enforcement to root out sources of organized crime and increase security
at ports of entry and the borders where drugs, firearms, and human trafficking are
occurring.
4.
Enforce the laws. End the soft-on-crime policies for violent
juveniles like the ones implemented at Parkland’s school district that allowed
a repeatedly violent, troubled student to avoid a criminal record even though ‘everyone
knew’ he had severe problems.
5.
Continue funding for security in vulnerable
public areas such as schools, arenas, and transportation hubs for physical
barriers, technology, and armed, trained personnel.
6.
Allow law-abiding citizens to own and carry
weapons as a first line of defense against criminals including the recognition
of state-issued carry licenses across state lines. Statistics show guns are used in self defense hundreds of thousands up to millions of times each year.
7.
Ensure that law enforcement can act on explicit
threats while maintaining current legal standards of due process with a
presumption of innocence. Circumventing due process or using safety panels outside the legal system are an abridgement of liberty.
8.
Expand the definition of sellers that are
required to do background checks based on number of transactions per year and
location of sales (eg. gun shows) without criminalizing private person-to-person transfers and
without creating gun registries, fees, licenses, or other barriers to gun
ownership by law-abiding citizens.
