B. Interview format:
In an attempt to better understand the barriers in getting perpetrators to surrender their guns, and the possible solution in remedying them, I conducted interviews with different members of the King County community. The goal of these interviews was to generate information regarding the experiences of DV victims, and their advocates as well as law enforcement agencies on the issue of gun surrendering. Interviews were done primarily in person with the attorneys, and primarily over the phone with the DV advocates. Due to the political sensitivity of this issue, the majority of the interviewees have requested to remain anonymous.
C. Interview Questions:
The following questions guided each interview: Background:
1. Can you tell us a bit about the work you currently do, and how it is related to the issue of domestic violence homicides or gun surrender laws?
a. How long have you been working in this capacity?
b. In which County has most of your work been in?
c. How often do you work with clients that are the victims of Domestic Violence?
2. Did any of your clients have a judge order their perpetrators to surrender their weapons, and if so, can you tell me about an instance where this has happened?
Recent Policy Changes and their impact:
3. Washington enacted a law in 2014 that mirrors federal law by prohibiting gun possession by anyone subject to a protective order. The protective order must have been issued after a noticed hearing
The two articles that I have read were “Connecticut School Shooting ‘An Attack on America’” by Ted Anthony and “The Price of Gun Control by Dan Baum. All around I believe these articles were both very interesting and both took different perspectives on the issues of guns in America. Both Anthony and Baum illustrated the different problems that we have in America and our communities with gun control and gun violence. But, they both brought the text together to relate it on a personal level. I enjoyed reading both texts and connecting to each one on a different level.
The number of murders every year committed was about 512; some were either homicides or gang related. About 80 percent of the murders committed were done with an illegal firearm. Evidence conducted by Tracey Meares, from Yale, found the high crime areas, committing murders or possessing illegal firearms lived in indigent and isolated communities. Chicago’s Project Safe Neighborhoods developed small community programs to reach out to felons and offenders. Developing small programs for felons and offenders was a way for Law Enforcement to understand their attitude and outlook on gun violence or possessing a gun. For Law Enforcement they wanted to stress the consequences of possessing an illegal firearm and get an ex-offender to share with felons the importance of staying away from a life of crime. There is no other better way to get through to a felon than an ex-felon sharing his own tragic life experiences.
There are many debates about gun violence and gun control, but no one can really find the common ground to stop the violence. Mallory Simon is an experienced writer who makes it aware that the people need take the shootings more literal than just brush them aside. She argues that there is a need for steps to be put into place to stop the reoccurrence of gun violence within our communities. She developed an article about the ongoing debate about gun violence, called “Gun Debate: Where is the Middle Ground?” She uses the emotional point of view from those that are affected by the violence, to show their concern and struggles they face in their lives to prevent the shootings.
Heller, the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to possess a firearm to use for lawful purposes, such as defending oneself within their home/property. The court case ruled that the Amendment was not connected to service in a militia (Constitution). Handgun possession is banned under District of Columbia law. This law prohibits the registration of handguns and makes it a crime to carry an unregistered firearm; additionally, all lawfully owned firearms must be kept unloaded and dissembled or bound by a trigger lock unless they are being used for lawful recreational activities or located in a place of business.
With the popular culture providing positive images of guns, the United States has a gun prevalence that is very rare in the modern world. While many people appreciate the “gun culture”, guns are heavily involved in violence in the United States. According to U.S. Department of Justice, since 1960, more than 750,000 Americans have died under firearms, including homicides, suicides, and unintentional injuries. The figure 1 provides a comprehensive survey of U.S. violent crimes for the period from 1993 to 2011.This figure illustrates that from 1993 to 2011, about 60% to 70% of homicides were associated with a firearm. Over the same period, between 6% and 9% of all nonfatal violence, with about 20% to 30% of robberies and 22% to 32% of aggravated assaults involving a firearm.
Throughout the history of the United States of America there has been debate on gun control. The debate has become even more relevant as more semi-automatic assault rifles are being sold and the amount of shootings we have been having, especially in this last month. There are a variety of views one can take on this argument. Many conservatives have been saying that more gun control is not necessary as it’s not the guns killing the people, it’s the people pulling the trigger that are killing innocent lives. On the other hand, people who are more liberal would like to see legislation passed that would put control on the sale of firearms as keeping weapons out of the hands of dangerous people who will willingly pull the
Many students in America, might consider school almost like a home because they spend about half a day in. We need students to be safe at school, so why not have an officer patrolling the hallways. To make the school much safer, the officers should have guns in case there is a threat towards the students. In the eyes of many United State citizens a gun can symbolize death; however, a gun can save several people’s lives. As U.S citizens, we have the right to keep and bear arms, so why do we not have police officers with guns patrolling schools. “Gun violence is a major social issue in America and American schools and university campuses have become targets of gun violence” (Bond). In the U.S we had several severe situations when someone comes to the school and starts to kill not only students, but teachers and staff, this could have been prevented if we were prepared and secured. Although the opposition may suggest it could be more dangerous to have an officer or guard be allowed with a gun; however, having an officer with a gun would decrease the number of shootings and other minor problems at schools.
Gun violence is the sign of a far greater universal problem in America today. Violence and gun violence specifically, is surrounded within, and spread all through every part of our society. All the reasons remain intimately related to the actual solution, which can only be a general solution one by treating it as one issue. The region that I live in is considered a peaceful part of Harvest, which I am particularly grateful about. I do not have to worry about gunfights in the roads of my community, nor maybe being helpless confronted by students with a gun at school. That, nevertheless, does not mean that my community is impermeable to gun violence. Huntsville has seen its share of gun violence from the incident at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), where three people were murdered and three others injured on February 12, 2010. Throughout the course of a routine gathering of the biology department attended by about 12 people, professor Amy Bishop stood up and began shooting those next to her with a 9-millimeter handgun (Hall 2010)
The United States is one of the few countries were the right to bear arms is protected by the constitution. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most violent with incidents involving guns this year reaching an estimated 36,212 and an approximate 9,050 deaths (“Gun Violence Archive”). There are an estimated 310 million firearms in households across American, these are only estimates because current gun laws do not require them to be registered or tracked. A more staggering estimate is that most of the guns owned by private citizens are semi-automatic guns, the same type of gun used in almost all mass shootings. While these privately owned guns are legally purchased, many times, they land in the hands of criminals, and owners never report them stolen. Mass shootings and gun crimes are not the only issues with gun violence the one never talked about is suicide, more guns available equals more suicides. The United States is one of the easiest countries to own a gun legally or illegally, stricter gun control laws are necessary.
On Wednesday June 18, 2015 nine shot dead at a historical black church in Charleston, South Dakota and only a month later on July 16, 2015 in Chattanooga, Tennessee with five dead leaving citizens devastated. The past year contains more than 350 mass shootings, averaging 1.02 shootings per day and continuous growing number of deaths, multiple mass shootings around the world leaving dozens of victims in its path. There is no exact definition of mass shootings, but most sources believe it is when four or more people are shot in one location. Citizens in America are easily able to obtain a gun and the growing issue is whether this should change and stronger laws in place. Although citizens believe gun control laws take away second amendment and right to protect themselves, mass shootings are increasing yearly and action needs to happen to prevent the next attack.
In about every nation, gun control has always been an issue of controversy. Gun control laws are quite different from country to country, each possessing different requirements, specifications, and ordinances, so on and so on. What will be examined are the specified gun control laws in three international countries, ranging from Canada, Australia, and Japan, as well as a comparison and contrast of the the similarities and unique differences toward American gun control laws and those in other countries, and finally, the effects of having loose gun control laws. Unlike America, these countries possess stricter laws regarding gun control.
Everyday, the biased news media reports another mass shooting. The media reports the cases of “police brutality” and the media reports the tragic accidents. The media doesn’t report the research by David Burnett and Clayton Cramer who track incidents of defensive gun use. The stories include women fighting off would be rapists and senior citizens protecting themselves from robbers. They are stories that prevent violent crimes from occurring, for they are stories that save lives.
Guns have been is society for centuries. They have been used for hunting, war, and even safety. However, in the past several years they have begun to take the lives of many innocent victims, often young children. In response to the killings in Newtown, Conn., it has been noted, “If this were a country, the number of children killed by gun violence would violate international law.” (Browne-Marshall) F.B.I. data shows in 2011, 1,668 African American children were killed due to guns. Day by day gun violence is rising and it is not only in ghetto neighborhoods.
According to the Toronto Police Service, in 2016 alone there has been an astonishing 190 incidents involving gun violence, with 39 of them resulting in death. This has been a 50% increase from the previous year. So how must we combat this incessant and utterly unnecessary bloodshed on the streets of Toronto? Well, first we must make a distinction that guns do not kill people, but rather, people kill people. This highlights that gun violence is not primarily due to the weapon itself, but the social conditions that instigate such altercations. Therefore, we must make an effort to increase the communal services available to those situated in areas with a history of gun violence. Particularly, these
The United States is home to approximately 5% of the world’s population and 31% of all mass shootings. Through these mass shootings and various other methods of gun violence, tens of thousands of people die every year. These gun-related deaths primarily originate from murder and children accidentally shooting themselves. Although those in favor of gun control tend to believe that guns should be terminated completely, the second amendment prevents lawmakers from being able to do so. Therefore, in order to combat these causes, alternative gun control solutions must be made for each one. Gun-related murders can be decreased through the use of universal background checks. Additionally, accidental shootings can be minimized through the