Swartzlander 1

Gun Control In America

Thesis Statement: Gun control in America does not need to increase in order to make gun related

violence decrease, make it easier to carry concealed weapons, and to enable individuals to be

better equipped to protect themselves and their families.

I. Gun related violence in America needs to decrease.

A. Guns have been a part of most crimes in the past years.

1. 42% of Americans will be the victim of a completed violent crime

(assault, robbery, rape) in the course of their lives.

2. A 2013 study of more than 18,000 prison inmates found that in 2004,

about “16% of state prison inmates and 18% of federal inmates” reported

having a firearm during the commission of the crime for which they were

incarcerated.

B. American Citizens that own weapons usually live in areas where the crime level

is low.

1. “Where you have the most armed citizens in America, you have the lowest

violent crime rate. Where you have the worst gun control, you have the

highest crime rate. - Ted Nugent”

2. ( San Bernardino Shooting)No assault weapons ban, no gun violence

restraining order, no ammunition magazine capacity law would have

prevented the San Bernardino slaughter.

II. American citizens need to be able to carry weapons concealed.

A. Instances where concealed carry permits saved lives.

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1. Teen shot in Atlanta school, Saved by off duty police officer.

2. Elderly homeowner who had a concealed carry was able to protect himself

from assault and burglary.

B. Pros of Concealed carry

1. People feel safe when they are around someone that has a concealed carry

permit.

2. Crime rates stay low.

3. Can keep public shootings from happening.

III. American citizens need to be able to protect their families.

A. Instances where families have been destroyed due to lack of protection.

1. The case of LaDonna and Troy French

2. Petit Family home invasion (Steven Hayes/ Connecticut home invasion

murders)

B. Mass shootings that could have been prevented by a concealed carry.

1. Sandy Hook

2. Fort Hood

3. Columbine

C. Second Amendment ensures protection.

1. “the Constitution does protect an individual right to have weapons for

self-defense, including defense against criminal violence that the

government cannot or will not prevent.” (The Second Amendment and the

Inalienable Right to Self-Defense)

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2. 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.

—Amendment II

IV. Counter Argument

A. Objection: Second Amendment does not mean that individuals can own weapons

to protect themselves.

1. Second Amendment

B. Reply: District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)

1. The Amendment’s prefatory clause announces a purpose, but does not

limit or expand the scope of the second part, the operative clause. The

operative clause’s text and history demonstrate that it connotes an

individual right to keep and bear arms.

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Anna Swartzlander

English IV Honors

David Cullen

4/27/2018

Gun Control In America

“42% of Americans will be the victim of a completed violent crime (assault, robbery,

rape) in the course of their lives” (Agresti). Yes, that is a very scary thing to think about. But gun

control laws could be the number one reason why that number is so high. Gun control in

America does not need to increase in order to make gun related violence decrease, Making it

easier to carry concealed weapons to enable individuals to be better equipped to protect

themselves and their families should be the goal. Gun control laws should not increase because

as of right now it is already hard enough for people to be able to own a gun even if they are not

convicted felons. All of the mass shootings, the home invasions that end in broken families, etc.

can all end if Americans were more equipped to protect themselves and the people around them.

One of the things that emerged the most when doing research was that most of the gun violence

that is happening is due to the gun control laws that will be implemented in the future. With this

being said, gun control does not need to increase because the citizens that obey the law are the

ones that are going to be punished, not the criminals. “ An eye for an eye will make the whole

world blind.” This quote by Ghandi is a good quote to describe the gun violence in today's news.

For the ages, guns have been a major factor in most crimes. Consider Abraham Lincoln

and John Wilkes Booth, or John F. Kennedy and Lee Harvey Oswald assassination stories. The

assassins of these Presidents were clever enough to be able to slip into the crowd and assassinate
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the President. Besides the Presidents that have been killed, think of the mobs and the gangs

during the ‘40s and all the people that crossed them and their retaliation with guns. There have

been so many crimes committed over time with weapons and no one has done anything to stop

them. Stories in history are news, here are the facts. “A 2013 study of more than 18,000 prison

inmates found that in 2004, about ‘16% of state prison inmates and 18% of federal inmates’

reported having a firearm during the commission of the crime for which they were incarcerated”

(Agresti). If that is only 18,000 inmates how would the numbers would look like nationally? To

answer that question According to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), almost

43.6 million criminal victimizations occurred in 1993, including 4.4 million violent crimes of

rape and sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault. Of the victims of these violent crimes,

1.3 million (29%) stated that they faced an offender with a firearm.

Recently the crime rates have skyrocketed due to terrorist attacks and the terror group

ISIS. A good example of how gun control would not have helped in the decrease of violence

would be the San Bernardino shooting. Fourteen people were killed and twenty-two were

seriously injured due to this awful act of terrorism. Before this event ever took place President

Obama said that there should be more gun control laws and the people that are on the TSA’s No

Fly list should not be able to own a weapon. “But no assault weapons ban, no gun violence

restraining order, no ammunition magazine capacity law would have prevented the San

Bernardino slaughter” (Farago). This event was an act of terrorism that could not have been

stopped because the terrorist would have gotten his hands on a weapon with or without a ban on

guns.This act of terrorism also shows that criminals including terrorists can get their hands on
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any type of weapon or gun.

American citizens should not have their right to own and carry a concealed weapon taken

away. People are quick to say that concealed weapons can cause more damage than the actual

criminal. Well, here are some instances where citizens have saved people from having a

concealed carry that might change your mind. One example of this would be an elderly man that

had to defend himself from his intruder that assaulted him. The homeowner was able to get to his

concealed weapon and was able to fire a shot that hit his intruder in the arm. “The intruder left

the scene but was found by the police and was charged with 1st degree assault and 1st degree

burglary” (Hawkins). If this man would not have had a weapon in his home and the intruder

would have come in, the elderly man would have been assaulted worse than he was in the

original crime. A fourteen year old child was shot and killed in an Atlanta school by a student

that had a weapon. Before any other students could be injured by this shooter an off duty

policeman was able to step in and stop any further injury.

The pros to carrying a concealed weapon are limited, but can have a great impact in

situations. One pro to having a concealed carry permit would be that if someone was to come

onto a school campus and start to shoot, the use of a concealed carry could make a difference

between one life, and all the lives of the children in the school. It is currently a felony for

someone to have a weapon on a school campus, although it is concealed and they have a license

for it. Another pro to having a concealed carry would be that some people feel safer around

someone with a weapon. Also, neighborhoods that have people that live in them with concealed

carry permits are more likely to have a low crime rate because the criminals avoid areas that are
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protected. People feel safe around people that have weapons because they know that if

something were to happen that they could be defended and protected.

Speaking of homes that people avoid due to weapons, here are some examples of families

that have been destroyed due to lack of protection. One well known case would be the French

family murder case of Reidsville. This happened to be one of the most mysterious cases that

anyone had seen from around their area. The daughter of Troy and Ladonna was stirred when an

intruder came into her bedroom, the parents were woken by this awful shriek and ran to their

daughter’s room. The intruder heard the parents and met up with them in the hallway leading to

the daughter's bedroom. The intruder then shot and killed the Mother and Father. “Records say

that the weapon was Troy French’s” (Contributed). This event is one that should not be

forgotten. This event happened because someone was able to get their hands on a weapon that

was not theirs and the victim was not able to protect himself. An event that could change the

people’s mind about what effects of gun control could be would be the shooting of Chris Kyle.

Chris Kyle’s wife, Taya Kyle, told CNN herself that gun control could not protect the people.

This statement is significant because she herself has always been afraid of guns. After having

multiple things happen to her she said this: “I have also become a gun owner, am prepared to

defend myself with a firearm, and understand the fear of my freedoms being taken away” (Kyle).

With this coming from the wife of a war hero, it really is a powerful stand. Taya Kyle went

through a lot with her husband being a veteran and having PTSD(Post Traumatic Stress

Disorder). Taya was around weapons through her marriage and was still was scared of them. But

after her husband's death, she applied for a concealed carry permit because she wanted to be safe

from people that could harm her or her family.

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An additional issue that is not really talked about a lot is mass shootings. Has anyone yet

thought of a way to keep them from happening? To name a few mass shootings that could have

had a different outcome if a concealed weapon would have been on campus would be easy. To

name them would be hard because on most school campuses the security or School Resource

Officers are supposed to have a weapon on them at all times to ensure that the school and the

children inside are safe. But there are some that needed someone with a concealed carry to step

in, like Columbine and Sandy Hook. These two events have many things in common. But the

one observation would be that they all are supposed to have some type of security. On the day,

the security failed to do its job. It is easy for people to say that it is the shooter’s fault and people

come up with excuses like, “he is mental” or “he has problems”. Not to be rude, but we all have

problems. That does not mean that it is okay for people to shoot innocent people just because

they are “mental” or have problems, the victims have families and their families will be affected

forever by the shooter’s actions. On April 20, 1999, two teens went on a shooting spree at

Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, killing 13 people and wounding more than 20

others before turning their guns on themselves and committing suicide. “The crime was the worst

high school shooting in U.S. history and prompted a national debate on gun control and school

safety, as well as a major investigation to determine what motivated the gunmen, Eric Harris, 18,

and Dylan Klebold, 17” (History.com Staff). Another school shooting that has been said to be

one of the worst would be the Sandy Hook shooting. The Sandy Hook shooting took place on

December 14th, 2012. This mass shooting resulted in 20 children between the ages of 6 and 7

years old and 6 faculty members killed. To consider that all of this could have been stopped is
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amazing. Although it is unfortunate that security was not able to get to the source before anyone

was shot, the people should still be grateful that police risk their lives everyday to be able to

keep citizens and children safe.

Everyone has heard the second amendment, “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”

(​Bill of Rights - Bill of Rights Institute​). People interpret it a different ways. Although the

second amendment is only one short sentence, it has a big meaning. To begin breaking it down,

in the first part of the amendment it says “A well regulated militia..”, let's stop there. A militia

around the times of the making of the constitution was a group of men over the age of sixteen

that had to sign up to be in the militia. If there were men over sixteen and did not sign up for the

militia they were fined for not protecting their town. With this being said, the second amendment

is not just a right for military personnel. The second amendment is saying that American citizens

have the right to have a weapon so that if something were to come up where a state needed a

militia to stand up for the constitution, they could. The next part of the amendment says, “...The

right of the people to keep and bear arms..”, The right to bear arms is simple. “When the

amendment was written, the word “arms” did not just mean guns, although they were included”

("Second Amendment."). It meant any weapon needed to ensure the protection of their

town,city,or state. “The Constitution does protect an individual right to have weapons for

self-defense, including defense against criminal violence that the government cannot or will not

prevent” (​Bill of Rights - Bill of Rights Institute​). This quote from an article on the Heritage

Foundation website explains what the second amendment offers as far as protection of yourself

and home. Last but not least, “...Shall not be infringed.” This is the big part of the amendment
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that people will mow over today. This last simple line means that the people cannot take away

your unalienable rights or natural rights. These rights were put into place way before any

American today was born so how can they say what is right or wrong?

People will argue with what the second amendment actually means. The second

amendment can be taken many ways. For a counter of what was discussed in the previous

paragraph, The second Amendment does not ensure protecting yourself using a weapon or

firearm. The second amendment states “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” (​The

Second Amendment and the Inalienable Right to Self-Defense​), This means that a Militia is

allowed to have weapons and can protect their state from unconstitutional laws or ordinances.

When this amendment was put into place, it was around a time where people had to have a

weapon to be able to protect their families. Today there is no need. There are local police that

can take care of you and your family.

Like said earlier, the second amendment can be interpreted in many ways. To think that

the second amendment is just referring to military is a pretty good point. But when the

amendment says “..A well regulated militia..” It means that the people have a right to bear arms

in case a need arises where the people need to stand up for themselves or their state if something

is being done that is unconstitutional. James Madison, the Father of the Constitution, said in

1789 that “A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the

best and most natural defense of a free country” (TJ Martinell). This quote from James Madison

is a good representation of what the part of the second amendment means when it says “..a well
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regulated militia..”. The Amendment’s prefatory clause announces a purpose, but does not limit

or expand the scope of the second part, the operative clause. The operative clause’s text and

history demonstrate that it connotes an individual right to keep and bear arms. An example of

why the second amendment is not just for military would be the case of District of Columbia v.

Heller. This landmark case showed that the second amendment really does protect your right to

bear arms and your right to protect yourself under the constitution. This case also showed that

someone has the right to self defense in their home if they do in fact own a weapon.

In conclusion, gun control should not be more limiting because it creates more crime than

without the laws. Gun control in America does not need to increase in order to make gun related

violence decrease. One should make it easier to carry concealed weapons, and to enable

individuals to be better equipped to protect themselves and their families. If these three things

were feasible, America would be a safer place for American citizens. Also,remember that the

second amendment does not just apply to the military, It is one sentence that can help to protect

yourself and your family through whatever may happen. Look into what the real meaning is if

you are having trouble understanding it. Remember that a concealed carry is not a bad thing to

have around. People are more likely to feel safe around someone who were to carry a concealed

weapon. You never know when an event might happen and you are saved or will save someone

with a concealed carry.

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Works Cited

Agresti, James D. & Smith, Reid K. “Gun Control Facts.” Just Facts. 13 June 2016. Web. 30

September 2016.

Author TJ Martinell. "2nd Amendment: Original Meaning and Purpose." ​Tenth Amendment

Center​. N.p., 16 Sept. 2016. Web. 20 Dec. 2016.

Copel, Larry. "Teen Shot at Atlanta School; Student Held." USA Today. Gannett, 01 Feb. 2013.

Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Davidson, Jacob. "A Criminologist's Case Against Gun Control." Time. Time, 1 Dec. 2015.

Web. 30 Sept. 2016.

Farago, Robert. "Gun Control Is Not the Answer: Opposing View." USA Today. Gannett, 04

Dec. 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2016.

Greenhouse, Linda, and Nicholas Casey. "Petit Family Killings." The New York Times. N.p.,

n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.

Hardy, David. "Why Gun Owners Are Right to Fight Against Gun Control."Reason.com. N.p.,

18 July 2013. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Hawkins, John. "10 Stories That Prove Guns Save Lives." Townhall. N.p., 02 Feb. 2013. Web.

16 Nov. 2016.

History.com Staff. "Columbine High School Shootings." ​History.com​. A&E Television

Networks, 2009. Web. 20 Dec. 2016.

Jones, Greg. "The Real Reason Americans Oppose Gun Control." The Federalist. N.p., 06 Jan.

2016. Web. 21 Sept. 2016.

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Kyle, Taya. "'American Sniper' Widow: Gun Control Won't Protect Us." CNN. Cable News

Network, 08 Jan. 2016. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Leonard, Kimberly. "Some Gun Control Laws Result in More Deaths." US News. U.S.News &

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"Second Amendment." Second Amendment - Kids | Laws.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec.

2016.

Zawitz, Marianne W. Guns Used in Crime: Firearms, Crime, and Criminal Justice. Washington,

D.C.: U.S. Dept. of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1995.

July 1995. Web. 13 Dec. 2016.

@brinstitute. "Bill of Rights - Bill of Rights Institute." Bill of Rights Institute. N.p., n.d. Web. 13

Dec. 2016.

@heritage. "The Second Amendment and the Inalienable Right to Self-Defense." The Heritage

Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

@heritage. "Solutions 2016: Expert Analysis, Powerful Messages, Winning Policies."Solutions

2016: Expert Analysis, Powerful Messages, Winning Policies. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Nov.

2016