How Donna’s Law Can Help Stop Gun Control Laws
If you’re against gun control (or for gun control), write to your state and federal legislators and urge them to pass Donna’s Law!
Send your support for HR 8361.
Donna’s Law is the most brilliant idea regarding guns that I’ve heard because it is NOT a gun control law. It doesn’t allow anyone to take away your right to carry a firearm.
25,000 people commit suicide every year using a firearm, and “the majority of all firearm fatalities in the U.S. are suicides” (source: CBS quoting Professor Mike Anestis of the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center at the Rutgers School of Public Health).
Donna’s Law is a voluntary self-registration to prohibit gun sales to the registrant, and it can be reversed after a waiting period of a couple of weeks. No one else can put someone on the registration except the person on the registration.
Donna’s Law will prevent many suicides, probably some murders due to family violence, and maybe even some mass shootings. That’s good for gun owners against gun control because fewer shootings will take a lot of pressure off politicians to enact gun control. Send your support for HR 8361.
U.S. Supreme Court, Gun Control, and New York State’s Law on Concealed Carry Permits
Update: June 23, 2022, was a great day for people and a bad day for criminals! The U.S. Supreme Court struck down New York State’s law on concealed carry permits; see WSJ, SCOTUS blog, and the written U.S. Supreme Court Opinion.
Update: June 25, 2022, President Biden signed a bipartisan gun safety law. Unfortunately, it doesn’t go far enough to stop needless deaths but, fortunately, doesn’t include what Democrats wanted, which would have done nothing but limit the rights of gun owners.
There is a way to prevent or significantly reduce mass shootings and other gun violence with gun control that gives gun enthusiasts greater freedoms. Really!
Good gun control laws that would stop mass shootings, thousands of deaths of young people on the streets, armed robberies, and other crimes with guns would benefit gun owners because people would stop seeking useless laws that restrict the rights of gun owners.
Vote in the poll below after reading this article!
An Understanding of Guns is Needed to Eliminate Gun Violence
Lack of knowledge and fear is what prevents effective gun control legislation and electrifies gun owners against it.
Why are people who demand gun control seriously uninformed about guns?
Because they do not own a gun, likely never used a gun, have no law enforcement experience, and have no knowledge about how criminals get guns.
This is why every time there is a mass shooting, people scream that we need more gun control. But their lack of knowledge is what leads to the erroneous belief.
The problem is that gun control restricts legitimate law-abiding citizens from owning guns. But licensed gun owners are not committing crimes.
State gun control cannot stop criminals.
Criminals do not need a license to get a gun. Criminals can easily buy guns illegally on the street or travel to another state where they do not need a license.
New York State already has (had!) the toughest gun control laws in the nation. In fact, gun control laws in NYS are (were!) far too restrictive, and gun violence is skyrocketing.
NYS gun control laws allow criminals to get guns without a license and prevent good people from getting a gun license.
Should Assault Rifles Be Banned?
An “assault” rifle is simply a rifle. There is no such thing as an assault rifle or assault weapon. It is an “assault” style rifle, a rifle that only looks like a military rifle but is not.
Lately, I have noticed that the TV news has frequently referred to the gun used in a mass shooting as an assault “style” rifle.
So, banning assault-style rifles is the same as banning all rifles. It’s like banning all knives, including knives for eating, when you want to ban knives for hunting.
There are many “assault” style rifles that are far from being assault weapons. For instance, the civilian version of the UZI is a single-shot semi-automatic rifle that is built to civilian rules for rifles and fires a 9mm pistol round. It just looks like the military version.
The rifle of choice for mass shooters, referred to by the news as an assault rifle, is the AR-15.
A common misconception is that AR stands for Assault Rifle. It does not. AR stands for ArmaLite Rifle. ArmaLite is the company that developed the rifle that the Army designated as the M16.
What’s the big difference between the AR-15 and other guns? The bullets. The bullets are .223 caliber.
The AR-15 is available in smaller and less deadly calibers such as 9mm and .22 Long Rifles (the bullet I learned to shoot with at summer camp when I was 12 years old).
But the .223 is a deadlier bullet. Only a little larger than the .22 caliber ammunition I used at camp, the .223 has a larger shell behind it with more gunpowder making the .223 a higher-velocity bullet.
Three things make a bullet more deadly. Mass, velocity, and shape. With lightweight rifles, velocity is more important because they usually have smaller caliber bullets. See, Physics That Makes Some Bullets Deadlier Than Others
It’s the speed of the bullet and its shape that causes so much damage to body tissue. The shape causes it to tumble, resulting in more surface area striking and transferring energy to body tissue.
.223 caliber ammunition is fast and has a small bullet that tumbles, so it’s like a bomb going off inside a body. If anything should be banned, it’s not the AR-15, it’s .223 ammunition.
But, it’s not law-abiding people who use these guns or bullets to kill people. That’s why I would propose it should not be banned but require a license to purchase it.
Both guns and ammunition should not be available to anyone under 21 and anyone who does not meet sufficient criteria to make certain they don’t fall into the hands of criminals and crazy people.
Is It Easy to Get a Handgun License?
Do you think it’s too easy to get a handgun license, and anyone can get one?
It’s almost impossible to get a carry license. But it’s easy for criminals to get guns because they don’t need a license.
As a lawyer, I am an Officer of the Court. As an Auxiliary Police Officer (volunteer law enforcement officer), I have been an employee of the police department for many years.
I graduated from the Police Academy, successfully completed the superior officer’s course, and am a Commanding Officer.
Auxiliary Police Officers must fill out the same difficult application and pass the same background check as regular police officers.
Auxiliary Police Officers are required to work a minimum number of hours (depending on rank) every month, or the police department will terminate the officer and take back the shield and ID card.
I have served in the police department for more than 20 years, which permits me to retire and receive nothing but a police ID card marked retired and many certificates from the Police Commissioner, the county, and politicians, in addition to the dozens of certificates I already have.
Unlike regular police officers, an auxiliary police shield does not permit auxiliary police to carry a gun. Auxiliary police must apply for a handgun permit.
The police department waives the handgun carry or target and hunting permit fee for Auxilliary Police Officers. This is one of the only three benefits an Auxiliary Police Officer receives, other than worker’s compensation when injured or killed on the job and the satisfaction of helping people. There is no pay, no pension, and no medical benefits.
Despite my qualifications, my handgun carry permit was downgraded to a target and hunting permit because of a technicality.
My handgun carry permit was taken away because I am a lawyer!
I changed my reason for needing a gun permit from being in the diamond business to being a lawyer.
At the time I changed my occupation, the police department allowed lawyers to obtain a carry permit. I was told to bring a letter written on my law firm stationery. But my letter was accidentally left in the old paper file, and my permit wasn’t officially changed in the new gun permit software.
When my permit was renewed 10 years later, I brought this to the attention of the pistol license section at the police department. I was told I was a victim of political changes in gun license issuing policies, and they are no longer allowed to issue carry permits to lawyers.
Are Gun Control Advocates Safer With Strict Laws?
News reports indicate that there are approx. 200 million AR-15-style rifles and 393.3 million guns in the U.S.
While the too many but small numbers of shootings make the news, that’s a lot of gun owners that aren’t committing crimes.
When a shooter at a shopping mall in Indiana killed 3 people, a 22-year-old man who was there and carrying a gun lawfully shot and killed the shooter. According to the CNN article and video, the police chief said, “But I’m going to tell you, the real hero of the day is the citizen that was lawfully carrying a firearm in that food court and was able to stop this shooter almost as soon as he began.”
Many years ago, while carrying my licensed handgun off duty, I was in my car when I saw three male teens physically assaulting an elderly man in Oceanside.
He accidentally cut them off in his car when he dropped his eyeglasses.
The three teens got out of their car and went to the elderly man’s car. I saw him roll his window down when one of the teens approached. I then saw the teen punch the elderly driver in the head.
I stopped my car and held all three perpetrators against the car at gunpoint until the police arrived. Two BSO officers (undercover street crime officers) arrived within 1-2 minutes, took over the arrest, thanked me, and I left.
I used to go to the movies when I had a carry permit, but I don’t feel safe in a dark movie theatre without my handgun, so I don’t go anymore. Instead, I built two movie theatres in my house.
I used to go to the mall, but I no longer feel safe in the mall, so I don’t go there anymore either. I buy on Amazon.
Current gun control laws prevent people like me from carrying a gun. That doesn’t make you safer. It makes you less safe.
On May 28, 2022, when a convicted felon used an illegally obtained “AR-15 type rifle” to start shooting at a birthday and graduation party from his car, a woman who was lawfully carrying her handgun shot him multiple times, killing him and preventing another mass shooting.
But lawmakers want to keep letting criminals illegally obtain guns and outlaw guns for people who seek a lawful license. Why? Because people scream for anything to be done, and politicians react without knowing what to do.
Even if ALL gun ownership was entirely outlawed in NYS, criminals will still be able to get guns as easily as they do now because they don’t need a license.
Just as drug laws don’t stop people from using illegal drugs, gun laws don’t do anything to stop criminals from getting guns.
If Gun Control Doesn’t Work, Why is There Gun Control?
People are reactionary. Politicians are also reactionary, reacting to the demands of their constituents without any knowledge of the real problem and no experience or knowledge to figure out how to solve the problem.
Politicians only react to news stories and the cries for “something must be done,” so they want to do anything without regard to whether it will.
Unfortunately, knee-jerk reactions without knowledge mean that no meaningful gun control that will reduce crimes will ever be achieved.
The politicians are railing against the new US Supreme Court Opinion, saying it will destroy New York. The truth is that is a good day for law-abiding citizens, but criminals don’t care because they never needed a license to buy a gun and still don’t.
Additionally, there is very little threat of punishment if criminals are caught buying an illegal gun. But people with a gun license have the lowest rate of convictions.
Could Gun Control Work?
Yes. A federal gun control law could allow an emotionally stable, law-abiding citizen to easily purchase a gun and have more ownership freedoms while also significantly preventing mass shootings and individual gun violence.
It must be a federal gun control law because state gun control laws can never be effective.
There is only one way to achieve a federal gun control law. By each side giving up what they will perceive as significant ground.
The problem is that Democrats want all guns banned (as NYS has almost accomplished), and Republicans will, rightfully, never stand for it.
I think Democratic politicians should make the first offers to expand gun rights for the majority while restricting them from the dangerous minority.
Why should Democrats make the first move? Because Republicans are too pig-headed.
An interesting opinion article on politico.com by Richard Feldman agrees with much of my article, and I agree with his article. Richard Feldman is an attorney and government affairs expert, author of Ricochet: Confessions of a Gun Lobbyist, and Past President of the Independent Firearm Owners Association.
We both agree that the age for the purchase of a long gun should be raised to 21, the same age under federal law for the purchase of a handgun. But I believe it should be age 25.
We both agree about Red Flag Laws.
We sort of agree about background checks. Richard Feldman is in favor of background checks for all commercial transfers of firearms but against universal background checks because a background check shouldn’t be required to give a rifle to a family member (handguns can’t be passed to family members).
I believe any transfer other than to a family member should be done through a gun dealer, and a background check should be required.
He wants to give an immediate income tax deduction for the purchase of gun safes for both homes and cars. This wasn’t something I thought of but sounds like a good idea to me.
Mr. Feldman wrote, “Finally, we need an organized and coordinated approach to this multifaceted problem.” I’m in agreement with this as well.
Mr. Feldman also wrote, “Defined in terms of promoting safety rather than denying rights, new gun laws can be politically advantageous to both sides.” Again, I’m in total agreement, which is what I wrote in this article.
What Is the Only Gun Control Law That Could Work?
Gun control can only work if it is federal gun control, and it should be.
I always believed it could be, and I even believe the NRA would back federal gun control under the right conditions achieved through intelligent negotiation. I have many ideas, some mentioned below, that could achieve a successful negotiation to enact federal gun control.
Each side has to give up something. The NRA has to agree to reasonable restrictions vis federal gun control. Anti-gun people need to allow greater freedom for gun owners.
Safeguarding the rights of licensed gun owners and making it easier to get a license while preventing the wrong people from getting a license could be a good roadmap to enacting a federal gun control law that would make almost everyone happy.
Unfortunately, the NRA probably wouldn’t trade restrictions for greater rights, and it is rare for politicians to be good negotiators, so I doubt it will ever happen. It would if I were a dictator.
Why Are There So Many Mass Shootings?
Mass shootings are not a new phenomenon, but the number has increased, and certainly, awareness of mass shootings has substantially increased because of the advent of TV and the Internet.
TV couldn’t spread the news when, in 1891, a man fired upon students and teachers at a school in Mississippi, wounding over fourteen people, mostly children. See A Brief History of Mass Shootings.
There are several reasons mass shootings have now become a common occurrence:
- Remington marketed bravado with slogans such as “Consider your man card reissued” to sell their Bushmaster AR-15 rifle with marketing targeted toward children.
- Computer games make it fun to shoot people. Remington even licensed their AR-15 to gaming companies.
- Emotionally unstable people desire power, proof of manhood, and recognition.
- TV news provides recognition and encourages copycats.
- Social Media distributes recognition and encourages copycats.
Why Are Guns So Easily Available to Criminals?
There are many reasons guns are easily available to criminals, and none of the reasons are licensed gun owners.
Many years ago, a big problem was what was called “Saturday Night Specials.” Those were very cheap guns made by manufacturers for no other purpose than for criminals.
Why was there no other purpose? Saturday Night Specials were so cheaply made that they could even be dangerous, and no legitimate gun owner wanted one.
But things have changed. Criminals today have expensive guns. They just don’t know how to shoot, and gang members frequently shoot innocent bystanders instead of their intended target. Just watching videos on TV of gang member shootings shows that they don’t know how to hold a gun or how to shoot.
The two largest problems are:
- Guns are purchased legally in other states with little or no gun control. They are purchased in other states both by individual criminals like a mass shooter and by criminals who illegally sell guns on the street to gang members, and
- The biggest threat today is untraceable Ghost guns that do not have serial numbers and are not sold by licensed gun dealers.
Ghost Guns
Now, anyone can easily manufacture untraceable guns at home without going anywhere.
Although New York State regulated ghost guns, it won’t help at all. People can still easily make illegal ghost guns in NYS, and 40 other states have not regulated ghost guns.
There needs to be a federal law prohibiting the sale of any gun parts without bearing a serial number to anyone other than licensed gun dealers.
Watch these videos to learn about ghost guns
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How Could Federal Gun Control Be Good for Gun Owners?
Federal gun control should provide the following benefits and freedoms to gun owners and people who would like to purchase a gun.
- Eliminate the need to show a significant reason or need to have a federal carry permit for a handgun. Anyone who is not restricted should be able to have a Federal handgun carry permit.
- Allow a federally licensed gun or handgun owner to transport and carry a gun in any state.
- Allow ownership of “assault” style rifles and high-capacity magazines with a federal license. See why banning large-capacity magazines won’t do anything.
How Could Federal Gun Control Prevent Mass Shootings and Violent Crime?
The restrictions mentioned below on who could purchase or own a gun could be effective in preventing criminals and people who might commit a crime from obtaining a gun legally and using it illegally.
What is far more difficult is how to prevent criminals from obtaining guns outside of the system, such as untraceable Ghost guns.
What Should a Federal Gun License Be Required For?
A federal gun license should be required for all handguns, no matter how many rounds (bullets) can be loaded, and rifles capable of accepting a magazine or more than 7 rounds without a magazine.
It should be noted that “assault” weapons are not mentioned because an “assault” style rifle does not operate differently than any other rifle.
Restrictions for Obtaining a Federal Gun License
Convictions
To get a Federal gun license, an applicant should not have a felony conviction or a conviction for a violent misdemeanor within 10 years of application.
Background Check
A background check should be required, but a background check is not sufficient to uncover emotional and mental conditions that would make gun ownership inappropriate. Someone who wants to buy a gun may not have had any prior mental treatment.
In addition to a background check, applicants for a Federal gun license should be evaluated by a psychologist or psychiatrist to pass a mental and emotional stability exam upon application and renewed every 10 years.
In Italy, anyone over 18 can own a gun. But their “…physician has to sign a certificate affirming that the potential gun owner does not suffer from drug addiction or mental health issues.”
A mental and emotional stability exam could be done the same way as an FAA First Class medical exam for pilots, which currently costs up to $200. The Federal government could regulate the cost of a mental and emotional stability exam which should be paid by the license applicant. I believe $150-$250 would be adequate.
Red Flag Law
There should be a federal red flag law, even if it’s unclear if red flag laws work.
It may be difficult to pass a red flag law that allows any person to file a petition even though the petition has to be heard by a judge, but it should at least be permitted when petitioned by law enforcement.
A judge ordered me to temporarily turn my handgun in to a police department when a girl who was living with me violated a temporary protection order her estranged husband had. My handgun was returned several months later when she moved out of my house. It was a minor inconvenience to prevent any possibility of her doing something terrible.
Boyfriend Loophole
What is the Boyfriend Loophole? A spouse convicted of domestic abuse will have to turn in their guns and cannot buy guns. However, this doesn’t apply to people who are not married.
The Boyfriend Loophole needs to be closed!
Minimum Age
The minimum age for a Federal gun license should be 25.
The minimum age to purchase or own any gun, including a single-shot rifle, should be 21. Anyone under 21 should be allowed to shoot any gun under the supervision of an adult.
Evan Bille, the coach for the Charlotte Junior Rifle Team says this needs to be done immediately.
Currently, I cannot allow a person without a handgun license to shoot my handgun, even at a range under my supervision and even if they are over the age of 21.
Safety Training Course
Successful completion of a safety training course should be required before anyone is permitted to purchase any gun, even a rifle that doesn’t need a license.
Handgun Safe or Gun Vault
A handgun safe or gun vault should be required for all handguns and rifles that require my proposed federal gun license. The gun(s) should be required to be stored in the safe when not carried if children are in the house or when left at home unattended if there are no children.
Domestic Violence
Guns should be removed from anyone arrested for domestic violence and returned only when authorized by a judge if there is no conviction. If there is a conviction, then the rule above about convictions should apply.
Ammunition
Require a Federal gun license to purchase certain types or quantities of ammunition. Require microstamping of certain ammunition like the .223.
Making Your Own Guns
Just as it is legal to make your own plane, register it, and fly it pursuant o FAA regulations concerning experimental aircraft, it should be legal for someone to make their own gun.
Federal law should prohibit the sale of any gun parts:
- Without bearing a serial number and
- To anyone other than licensed gun dealers.
Untraceable Ghost guns need to be outlawed with very severe penalties.
High-Capacity Magazines
High-capacity magazines should not be banned but should be purchased and owned with a license.
There are many reasonable rules that could and need to be added, and I will continue this article.
One of those rules should require the storage of an unloaded handgun when transporting via an airline. Airlines should be able to charge a fee for the handling and storage of a handgun.
I am not against any reasonable restriction that prevents criminals, emotionally disturbed people, and mentally ill people from getting guns or having their guns taken away, just as long as everyone else keeps their right to have and carry a gun.
Is the NRA Bad?
The NRA leadership consists of an antiquated bunch of idiots and morons that don’t know how to protect my right to own and carry a gun.
The NRA refuses to give a millimeter, no less than an inch, while anti-gun donations to politicians have now outpaced NRA donations.
Anti-gun activists are gaining ground. That’s ok because it’s too easy for criminals and other dangerous people to get guns. But it should not be at the cost of the rights of legitimate gun owners. It should be negotiated ground.
The NRA must negotiate reasonable controls to prevent criminals, the emotionally disturbed, and the mentally ill from getting both guns and ammunition while expanding the rights of qualified legitimate gun owners.
The NRA will result in the loss of my rights and the rights of other legitimate gun owners. That is the reason I have refused to join the NRA.
Are Restrictive Gun Control Laws in New York Dangerous?
My favorite saying is, “Be careful what you wish for.”
New York State’s gun control laws have become so tough as to prevent law-abiding citizens from carrying a gun that the restrictions may now be overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.
According to Bloomberg, the Supreme Court Justices suggested that they will rule that most people have a constitutional right to carry a handgun outside the home and invalidate New York’s law requiring a special justification to get a concealed-carry permit for handguns.
The result will be gun control laws in New York AND in every state that is even less restrictive than they would have been if New York had just been reasonable.
The 8 states and DC with restrictive gun control laws should thank New York for that!
When I did have a carry permit, it was because I was working in the diamond business. New York State thought it was a sufficient need to carry a gun, but insanely, New York City refused to let me carry my gun in New York City even though my office and most of my business were in New York City.
If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns New York’s restrictive gun control law, it will be a good day for me and bring a smile to my face.
New York can find other ways to regulate who can carry a handgun. For instance, minimum age of 21, with no criminal record, require a safety course and other reasonable conditions.
There is no reason everyone can’t live together without violence. When both sides are extremists, nothing works.
Update: Today is a great day! The U.S. Supreme Court Struck Down New York State’s Law on Concealed Carry Permits, see WSJ, SCOTUS blog, and the written U.S. Supreme Court Opinion.
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