Is it right to toughen up the current gun control laws? Or is the government focusing on the wrong things? Here's where gun control gets it wrong.
How Tougher Gun Control Doesn't Solve the Problem
An op-ed in the New York Daily News published last week calls into question NYC’s gun laws, and asks if they can still be considered “tough.”
NYC is well-known for having some of the strictest gun control laws in the country, rivaled only by Washington, D.C.
Obtaining a New York Pistol License (NYPL) is a long and involved process.
It frequently takes a year to complete and requires numerous documents, including reference letters stating that the applicant is of “good moral character, and an in-person interview.
Rising Shooting Cases Despite Tough Gun Control Laws
And yet, the number of shootings in NYC in 2020 is already higher than in all of 2019 – and it’s only September.
It’s not surprising that obtaining a gun illegally is a much more simple and straightforward process.
As the author of the op-ed, Robert Holden, continues in his research into how these shootings can still be happening at the rate that they are, he hits the nail right on the head: “very few of these criminals are actually being punished by New York’s revolving-door court system.”
And yet, after describing in detail one specific example of Micah Belton, who was arrested or accused of being involved in at least five shootings before finally being remanded, Holden has the audacity to ask, “If someone like this can go in and out of custody, are New York’s gun laws actually that strict?”
Law-Abiding Gun Owners vs Illegal Possession
New York’s gun laws only apply to those who attempt to follow them. By definition, criminals do not follow laws.
Holden may not be intending to, but he is instead highlighting the faults in New York’s court systems.
“As the Daily News reported, nearly half of all people accused of gun possession from March 16 to Aug. 17 were set loose without bail.”
At no point does Holden address how these guns reached the hands of these criminals.
There is no information on if any of these guns were obtained legally, if the guns were registered in the names of those who used them, and if any person using them had any type of permit to do so.
If NYC were to amend their gun laws and make them even more difficult to comply with, does Holden truly believe that the number of shootings with illegal weapons would decrease?
Gun control only increases the impediments to law-abiding citizens owning firearms.
It does not prohibit or limit criminals from obtaining firearms.
New York even amended their bail reform laws in April.
However, New York judges still do not have the ability to assess the dangerousness of a suspect when choosing to remand them.
Time to Focus on the Right Things
What good do the 2,152 gun arrests made by the NYPD between January 1, 2019, and June 29, 2020, do, if judges will simply release the suspects afterward?
Removing illegal weapons and repeat offenders from the streets will be a much more difficult and complicated process than passing even more restrictive legislation for obtaining a firearm.
But as usual, this is where gun control gets it wrong.
Do you believe that the local government of NYC is wrong to impose tougher gun control? Please share with us your thoughts in the comments section!
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