Congressional Gun Violence Task Force Recommendations

[The Teacher]

Looks like Rep. Thompson (D-CA) has released his "task force" recommendations. Looks like more of the same, and appears to contradict itself a few times...

http://www.bobbyscott.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=829:rep-bobby-scott-gun-violence-prevention-task-force-chair-mike-thompson-announce-policy-principals&catid=63:2013-press-relases

The Gun Violence Prevention Task Force urges Congress to:

Ø Support the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans. The United States Supreme Court affirmed individuals’ 2nd rights to firearms in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008). However, the Supreme Court also held that “the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited,” Within the limits described by Heller, the federal government has the responsibility to take appropriate steps to protect our citizens from gun violence.

Ø Support citizens’ rights to possess firearms for hunting, shooting sports, defense, and other lawful and legitimate purposes: In the United States, there is a long tradition of hunting and recreational shooting, and firearms are often passed down within families from generation to generation. Policies passed by Congress should respect this.

Ø Reinstate and strengthen a prospective federal ban on assault weapons: These weapons are designed to fire a large number of rounds in a short period of time. They constitute a lethal threat to law enforcement and other first responders.

Ø Reinstate a prospective federal ban on assault magazines: These magazines hold more than ten rounds and allow a shooter to inflict mass damage in a short period of time without reloading. Banning them will save lives.

Ø Require a background check for every gun sale, while respecting reasonable exceptions for cases such as gifts between family members and temporary loans for sporting purposes: It is estimated that four out of ten gun buyers do not go through a background check when purchasing a firearm because federal law only requires these checks when someone buys a gun from a federally licensed dealer. That would be like allowing four out of ten people to choose if they’d go through airport security. This loophole allows felons, domestic abusers, and those prohibited because of mental illness to easily bypass the criminal background check system and buy firearms at gun shows, through private sellers, over the internet or out of the trunks of cars.

Ø Strengthen the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) database: Immediate action is needed to ensure the information in the NICS database is up to date. Many federal and state agencies remain deficient in transferring important records to the database. Without the information, the background checks aren’t complete. This needs to change.

Ø Prosecute those prohibited buyers who attempt to purchase firearms and others who violate federal firearm laws: Federal law bars nine categories of people—including felons and those prohibited because of mental illness —from buying guns. But when prohibited persons attempt to buy guns, they are hardly ever prosecuted. More can and must be done to make these investigations and prosecutions a priority.

Ø Pass legislation aimed specifically at cracking down on illegal gun trafficking and straw-purchasing: Straw-purchasing is when a prohibited buyer has someone with no criminal history walk into a gun store, pass a background check and purchase a gun with the purpose of giving it to the prohibited buyer. This puts guns in the hands of people who are prohibited from having them. Congress should pass a law that will put an end to this practice.

Ø Restore funding for public safety and law enforcement initiatives aimed at reducing gun violence: Congress should fund law enforcement’s efforts to reduce gun violence, while supporting federal research into causes of gun violence. Put simply, there is no reason the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) or the National Institute of Health (NIH) should be inhibited from researching the causes of gun violence. And there is no reason for the restrictions federal law places on our law enforcement officers’ ability to track and combat the spread of illegal guns.

Ø Support initiatives that prevent problems before they start: Local communities should have assistance in applying evidence-based prevention and early intervention strategies that are designed to prevent the problems that lead to gun violence before those problems start.

Ø Close the holes in our mental-health system and make sure that care is available for those who need it: Congress must improve prevention, early intervention, and treatment of mental illness while working to eliminate the stigma associated with mental illness. Access to mental health services should be improved, the shortage of mental health professionals should be addressed, and funding should be made available for those programs that have proven to be effective.

Ø Help our communities get unwanted and illegal guns out of the hands of those who don’t want them or shouldn’t have them: Congress should help support and develop local programs that get unwanted guns off our streets. And Congress should work with states to develop programs that get guns out of the hands of those convicted of certain crimes or those prohibited because of mental illness.

Ø Support responsible gun ownership: Congress should support safety training, research aimed at developing new gun safety technologies and the safe storage of firearms.

Ø Take steps to enhance school safety. Congress must help all schools implement evidence-based strategies that support safe learning environments tailored to the unique needs of students and local communities. And Congress must work with all schools to develop emergency response plans.

Ø Address our culture’s glorification of violence seen and heard though our movie screens, television shows, music and video games: Congress should fund scientific research on the relationship between popular culture and gun violence, while ensuring that parents have access to the information they need to make informed decisions about what their families watch, listen to, and play.

 

[InkEd]

The economy is the worst it has been in over 60 years and rather than doing anything about it the idiots waste time, money, resources, man-hours and everything else on trying to re-write the Constitution.

WHO are the THEY to alter the Bill of Rights which is a cornerstone of our republic?
WHAT do they want to ACCOMPLISH since even Joe Bidden ADMITS they don't effect crime?
WHEN will they DO something that ACTUALLY helps the mental illness issue?
WHERE do they get off trying to disarm law abiding citizens?
WHY don't they stop and focus on the economy and infrastructure of our nation?
HOW much MONEY have they WASTED on gun control instead of REALLY helping people?

 

[gunsandreligion]

the idiots

thats the problem. Most of our politicians are idiots. Unfortunatly, most of the few smart ones are even scarier.

 

[jrdolall]

A couple of points I agree with. Enforce laws that are already on the books. Why does this require new legislation?

Other than that it is politlcal pandering and will only pass in CA, NY and Chicago.

 

[Solo]

"Assault magazines"? Seriously?

 

[InkEd]

Does a rolled-up copy of American Rifleman used to swat an insect count as an "assault magazine?"

 

[mbt2001]

After seeing what Obama is doing/plans to do with drones, how can anyone be for giving him more power?

 

[Wilbert]

Does a rolled-up copy of American Rifleman used to swat an insect count as an "assault magazine?"

+1

 

[SaxonPig]

All the points after the first two directly contradict the first two.

Hypocritical Commies...

 

[Texan Scott]

Congress should help support and develop local programs that get unwanted guns off our streets.

We need this. Specifically, we need more police officers to do this, backed by enough courts to try the cases, laws that allow for real penalties for real criminals, and enough jail space to put them in for their full sentence.

Shame, shame, SHAME on Joe Biden for wanting more guns laws when he won't insist on enforcing the ones we have.

 

[kwguy]

Keep. Fighting. It will never end. We have to keep doing what we can. Never stop. Never take a breather.

 

[razorback2003]

Assault magazine?


These laws are already in place in California. Have those laws fixed anything in California? As we speak there is a rogue LAPD running around killing people. I guess the law didn't fix that problem.

 

[happygeek]

They're looking at the whole problem wrong, you can tell this by the way they word their 'task force'. So they're concerned about "gun violence", but they don't care about the 1,694 some people stabbed to death in 2011 or the 728 people who were beaten to death (http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/uc...-2011/tables/expanded-homicide-data-table-8)?

If they want to do something about violence in general, and the homicide rate in particular, they should end The War on Drugs and reform the criminal justice system so violent criminals like William Spengler (http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/24/us/new-york-firefighters-shooting) won't be let out of jail in the first place.

But they'd rather punish all Americans than focusing on those who've been duly convicted in a court of law.

 

[Cesiumsponge]

Well, we could start a knife turn-in program like in the UK, and post these nifty posters up all over

 

[JRH6856]

The Gun Violence Prevention Task Force urges Congress to:

Ø Support the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans. The United States Supreme Court affirmed individuals’ 2nd rights to firearms in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008). However, the Supreme Court also held that “the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited,” Within the limits described by Heller, the federal government has the responsibility to take appropriate steps to protect our citizens from gun violence.

Actually, the federal government has no responsibility at all in this area. It is best left to the individual states.

Ø Support citizens’ rights to possess firearms for hunting, shooting sports, defense, and other lawful and legitimate purposes: In the United States, there is a long tradition of hunting and recreational shooting, and firearms are often passed down within families from generation to generation. Policies passed by Congress should respect this.

Under Heller, this means Congress should refrain from regulating firearms in common use for these purposes. The modern, military style, semi-automatic sporting rifle is in common use for home defense.

Ø Reinstate and strengthen a prospective federal ban on assault weapons: These weapons are designed to fire a large number of rounds in a short period of time. They constitute a lethal threat to law enforcement and other first responders.

Assault weapons are fully automatic weapons which have been regulated since 1934 and banned since 1986. No further action by Congress is necessary.

Ø Reinstate a prospective federal ban on assault magazines: These magazines hold more than ten rounds and allow a shooter to inflict mass damage in a short period of time without reloading. Banning them will save lives.

There is no such thing as an "assault magazine" and the 10 round limit is purely arbitrary and without basis in reality. All firearms come from the factory with a magazine. This magazine, whether it be 3 rounds or 30, is standard capacity for that firearm.

Ø Require a background check for every gun sale, while respecting reasonable exceptions for cases such as gifts between family members and temporary loans for sporting purposes: It is estimated that four out of ten gun buyers do not go through a background check when purchasing a firearm because federal law only requires these checks when someone buys a gun from a federally licensed dealer. That would be like allowing four out of ten people to choose if they’d go through airport security. This loophole allows felons, domestic abusers, and those prohibited because of mental illness to easily bypass the criminal background check system and buy firearms at gun shows, through private sellers, over the internet or out of the trunks of cars.

The estimate of 4 out of 10 comes from an outdated study made over 20 years ago. Presently, most sales at gun shows are made by federally licensed dealer who conduct background checks. Sales made over the internet between parties in different states must go through FFL dealers who conduct background checks. Many private sellers only sell to parties who have a valid concealed weapons permit in their state which serves the same purpose as a background check. Individuals who would not pass a background check, will simply not buy from anyone requiring one. Unless there is a nationwide registry of firearms, there is no way of knowing if a firearm has changed hands in a private transaction, with or without a background check. Such a registry would violate current federal law and would infringe a constitutionally protected right. Historically, in other countries, registration has been the precursor to confiscation and will be viewed as such by American gun owners. A 1997 U.S. Justice Department survey of 14,285 state prison inmates found that among those inmates who carried a firearm during the offense for which they were sent to jail, 0.7% obtained the firearm at a gun show, 1% at a flea market, 3.8% from a pawn shop, 8.3% from a retail store, 39.2% through an illegal/street source, and 39.6% through family or friends.

Ø Strengthen the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) database: Immediate action is needed to ensure the information in the NICS database is up to date. Many federal and state agencies remain deficient in transferring important records to the database. Without the information, the background checks aren’t complete. This needs to change.

Do this

Ø Prosecute those prohibited buyers who attempt to purchase firearms and others who violate federal firearm laws: Federal law bars nine categories of people—including felons and those prohibited because of mental illness —from buying guns. But when prohibited persons attempt to buy guns, they are hardly ever prosecuted. More can and must be done to make these investigations and prosecutions a priority.

Do this

Ø Pass legislation aimed specifically at cracking down on illegal gun trafficking and straw-purchasing: Straw-purchasing is when a prohibited buyer has someone with no criminal history walk into a gun store, pass a background check and purchase a gun with the purpose of giving it to the prohibited buyer. This puts guns in the hands of people who are prohibited from having them. Congress should pass a law that will put an end to this practice.

Straw purchases are already illegal, but no law will put an end to any practice unless that law is enforced.

Ø Restore funding for public safety and law enforcement initiatives aimed at reducing gun violence: Congress should fund law enforcement’s efforts to reduce gun violence, while supporting federal research into causes of gun violence. Put simply, there is no reason the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) or the National Institute of Health (NIH) should be inhibited from researching the causes of gun violence. And there is no reason for the restrictions federal law places on our law enforcement officers’ ability to track and combat the spread of illegal guns.

The problem is violence, not gun violence. Guns are only one of many instruments use to violent purpose and are not even the most widely used. If the CDC is to focus on "gun violence" this is discriminatory towards law abiding firearms owners and there is every reason to inhibit such action. The reference to restrictions on the ability to track the spread of illegal guns appears to be another call for a national registry of firearms which as noted earlier is a discriminatory infringement on a protected right.

Ø Support initiatives that prevent problems before they start: Local communities should have assistance in applying evidence-based prevention and early intervention strategies that are designed to prevent the problems that lead to gun violence before those problems start.

Once again, the problem is violence, not guns

Ø Close the holes in our mental-health system and make sure that care is available for those who need it: Congress must improve prevention, early intervention, and treatment of mental illness while working to eliminate the stigma associated with mental illness. Access to mental health services should be improved, the shortage of mental health professionals should be addressed, and funding should be made available for those programs that have proven to be effective.

Ø Help our communities get unwanted and illegal guns out of the hands of those who don’t want them or shouldn’t have them: Congress should help support and develop local programs that get unwanted guns off our streets. And Congress should work with states to develop programs that get guns out of the hands of those convicted of certain crimes or those prohibited because of mental illness.

Be very careful in regards to mental illness. Restrictions of rights should be limited to those that display a history of violent behavior, whether mentally ill or not. Mental health professionals have said that there is no reliable psychological predictor for violent behavior, other than past history. Broad restrictions will only be a negative incentive to those needing help to seek treatment, especially if treatment of a non-violent condition could result in loss of rights.

Ø Support responsible gun ownership: Congress should support safety training, research aimed at developing new gun safety technologies and the safe storage of firearms.

As well as supporting and promoting safe firearms handling by individuals in the form of safety training and practice. The Civilian Marksmanship Program (yes, the federal government has one) should be encouraged and funded to develop marksmanship and safety training programs, and grants should be provide to cities and states for the establishment and maintenance of public shooting ranges.

Ø Take steps to enhance school safety. Congress must help all schools implement evidence-based strategies that support safe learning environments tailored to the unique needs of students and local communities. And Congress must work with all schools to develop emergency response plans.

School curriculum should include mandatory firearms safety training which will help demystify firearms and allay curiosity which can lead to tragedy.

Ø Address our culture’s glorification of violence seen and heard though our movie screens, television shows, music and video games: Congress should fund scientific research on the relationship between popular culture and gun violence, while ensuring that parents have access to the information they need to make informed decisions about what their families watch, listen to, and play.

Again. the focus should be on all violence, not just gun violence. Bullying in our schools which can drive a child to seek revenge is one of the things not mentioned that should be addressed.

 

[Walkalong]

They truly want us disarmed and helpless, looking to them to "take care" of us.

Never forget that when they say they only want this or that. They want it all.

 

[r1derbike]

I know of a lot semi-auto rifles that may fire a large number of rounds in a short period of time. They are not assault weapons.

The lies, misinformation, and lunacy continues.

I wrote my representatives again today (email). Have you?

 

[Jim Watson]

Enforce laws that are already on the books.

That champion of freedom, Chuckie Schumer, said, you would not like it if ALL the laws already on the books were enforced. It is like the tax code, there are so many contradictory laws that you almost cannot be in compliance with them all at the same time.

 

[Queen_of_Thunder]

Its pure Treason.

 

[Cesiumsponge]

They truly want us disarmed and helpless, looking to them to "take care" of us.

That's unintentionally deceptive. Law enforcement has no legal obligation to offer us protection, according to the trending of court precedents. This is rational in the sense that they can't be held liable if they don't get to you in time during the commission of a crime. At the same time, it means they can't be held liable if they fail in their duties or neglect their duties.

I don't need a gun, I'll call the police!
I don't need a fire extinguisher, I'll call the fire department!
I don't need CPR, I'll call the medics!