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Olive Thompson Nikki Jeffrey POLS103-001 March 1 2020 Pro Gun Control As stated in the United States Constitution under 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.” Since then, there has been a large scale debate and various legislative changes in order to come to a conclusion as to what the second amendment originally intended. This essay will address gun control in the United States, taking specifics from Colorado gun laws and past shootings. An increase in gun regulation would conclude that The Second Amendment is not an unlimited right to own guns and would also decrease gun violence in Colorado. Limitations on how and what type of guns are sold would affect a variety of parties including gun owners, victims of gun violence, and potential gun violence victims. Restrictive gun control legislation would decrease the rate of violence. As of 2017, 73% of homicides committed in the United States were gun related. This is compared to England/Wale’s 3%, Canada’s 38%, and Australia’s 13%--all of which have more restrictive gun control than the United States. (BBC 2019) Specifically in Colorado, cases such as People v Cisneros have allowed the state to “reasonably regulate” guns and other weapons (Giffords 2018). Certain weapons have a higher likelihood of causing more damage. Preventing this would not stop people who are determined to obtain a weapon. However increasing control on these weapons also increases the likelihood that criminals are brought to justice because there is clear legislation restricting the access of the weapon that they obtained. Shootings at any scale

are illegal, but combined with the gun control, it is more likely that shooters will be brought to justice. According to the Colorado State Patrol’s main page about gun laws, “it is an individual's responsibility to abide by all sections of each statute in order to be in compliance.” Even though guns are allowed in the public, there are “bans on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, [and] bans on carrying firearms in “sensitive places”, there will always be people who are able to illegally bring weapons into public places. (Lund 2020) The more regulation there is for those who want to obtain a firearm, the less likely it will fall into the wrong hands, despite the fact that the opportunity will always be there. A Lancet study from March 2016 found that background checks for firearms could reduce deaths by 56.9% and gun identification requirements could reduce deaths by 82.5% (ProCon.org 2019) Authorised gun users should have no trouble obtaining a weapon even if there is an increase in security. From a Utilitarianism perspective, the value of lives that could be lost from a shooting should come before the inconvenience of a longer background check for gun users. Recognising the increased risk of violence when guns are present is a reason to increase gun control. For example, “A woman's risk of being murdered increases 500% if a gun is present during a domestic dispute.” (ProCon.org 2019) The Second Amendment protects the militia, but is not unlimited to the individual, therefore justifying an increase in gun regulation. In Article II, Section 13 of Colorado’s Constitution declares that ““[t]he right of no person to keep and bear arms in defense of his home, person and property, or in aid of the civil power when thereto legally summoned, shall be called in question; but nothing herein contained shall be construed to justify the practice of carrying concealed weapons.”. Colorado’s Constitution is increasing gun control and alluding to

the fact that the Constitution is not unlimited to the individual. Although 64% of the guns used in US murders are handguns, state legislators continue to focus on the ban of assault rifles. (BBC 2019) Colorado interprets the Second Amendment to to allow the prohibition of multi-burst trigger activators. During the 2018 regular session, a bill was passed that declared that carrying a dangerous weapon is a “class 5 felony for a first offense and a class 4 felony for each subsequent offense”. (Colorado Constitution, SB18-051) Providing a multi-burst trigger results in the same violation. Limitations on criminalising the carrying and manufacturing of certain guns has been challenged by gun owners. In the case of Robertson v City and County of Denver, plaintiffs argued that the limits on guns were unconstitutional. The trial court argued that certain regulations from Denver were “overbroad”(Giffords 2018). This was later reversed by the Supreme Court of Colorado which concluded that although Article II, Section 13 of the Colorado Constitution is important, “the state may regulate the exercise of that right under its inherent police power so long as the exercise of that power is reasonable.” The court found that the right to bear arms is not a fundamental right, due to the fact that owning certain weapons would increase death and injury. Many Coloradans believe in self-defense and individual reliance. Guns are rarely used in self defence-- from a 2007 study, 0.79% of victims [of violent crimes] protected themselves with a threat of use or use of a firearm. Individuals at risk such as children, women, and mentally unstable would benefit from an increase in gun control in terms of safety from others and themselves. While the Second Amendment does give the right to bear arms, it is also not unlimited to the individual. Limiting the Second Amendment would decrease the likelihood of violent crimes.

References: “America's Gun Culture in Charts.” BBC News. BBC, August 5, 2019. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41488081. “Colorado Gun Laws.” Colorado State Patrol - CSP, June 22, 2017.

https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/csp/colorado-gun-laws. “State Right to Bear Arms in Colorado.” Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, November 9, 2019. https://lawcenter.giffords.org/state-right-to-bear-arms-in-colorado/. Lund, Nelson. “The Second Amendment.” Second Amendment | The National Constitution Center. Accessed February 1, 2020. “Prohibit Multi-Burst Trigger Activators.” Prohibit Multi-burst Trigger Activators | Colorado General Assembly. Accessed February 1, 2020. https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb18-051. “Pros & Cons - ProCon.org.” Gun Control. Accessed February 1, 2020. https://guncontrol.procon.org/. "The Constitution of the United States," Amendment 2. Accessed February 1, 2020 “The Colorado Constitution” Article II, Section 13. Accessed February 1, 2020....