Updated Post (6/5/2014): Sometime ago, I wrote a form letter to IL Senator Dick Durbin (D) as part of an assigment our government class were doing. There'd been an increase in gun violence in Chicago over the course of the year, and gun deaths are still a pervasive problem; especially amongst our youth. I wanted to understand Senator Durbin's platform on guns, gun safety and 2nd Amendment rights. I wanted to understand what Congress was doing to help curb the violence. The following is that letter and Senator Durbin's response.
----------------------------------------------------
711 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 2051
Dear Senator Durbin,
My name is Michael Lee Carter, and I am an educator in the northern suburbs of Chicago. I am originally from Detroit, having moved here just over ten years old. We challenged our government class to address their senator or congressman about a policy issue or piece of current legislation that concerns them. The goal of these letters is to teach our students that they have a voice in the democratic process and that their voices matter.
Certainly in recent years, let alone recent months, both of our hometowns have had a considerable amount of national and international attention. Plenty of positive stories are happening in Chicago and Detroit from art communities, church organizations and other non-profits endeavoring to help save the Motor City to everyday people in Chi-Town working hard to improve schools, neighborhoods and others' lives. Some of it has been negative, though, and has garnered more public scrutiny. Between bankruptcies and pension crises, both cities are embroiled in publicity surrounding gun crimes that have led to more tragedies than inspirational narratives.
The Cornell Square Park incident in Chicago's Back-of-the-Yards neighborhood is the latest example of the crisis besieging Chicago, Detroit and other urban centers. However, the inner-city is not alone. From Newtown, CT to Aurora, CO; from Gabrielle Giffords and the other victims of the Tucson incident to most recently the Navy Yards shooting involving a mentally compromised reservist, America is at war with itself. It is a “civil war” with people standing on different sides of the issue: Do tighter gun control laws ensure the safety of citizens, or do they encroach on a Constitutional right to legal gun ownership? Laws such as “Stand Your Ground” don’t seem to help, especially when it seems to only polarize our nation over issues of race, equality and fairness under the law. Though I am an advocate of the Constitutional right to gun ownership, I believe that the laws governing unlawful discharge of guns, illegal ownership or distribution of guns, the breaking of inter-state laws in terms of purchasing guns to be distributed unlawfully in other states (a federal violation), and the carry or use of a gun in the process of a crime (felony or not) should have stronger sentencing guidelines that are fair across the board.
There has to be equal guidelines defining use of a firearm in self-defense that are clear and fair as well.
Legal gun ownership in states with conceal and/or open carry should stipulate that gun owners have insurance for each firearm purchased and kept in the home that is separate from home insurance. This would add one more layer of accountability and ensure families are taken care of in the event that people are injured or killed in firearm discharge. If I have to register ownership of each car in my possession, carry a legal license to drive and have auto insurance for each driver authorized to drive in my family, then it makes sense that the same should be true of a gun owner.
In the same vein, guns and alcohol do not mix. Drivers who drive under the influence suffer penalties for DUI’s across different states. Vehicles involved in DUI are often confiscated depending on the situation and one’s license can be revoke depending on the system in one’s state. If it is found that a shooter who discharged a firearm was under the influence of alcohol or mind-altering drug, then there should be stiffer penalties also.
Much has been said about diagnosed depression, emotional and mental disabilities and the use of firearms by those who live with these issues. The names Jared Lee Loughner, James Holmes, Adam Lanza and Aaron Alexis has put mental health and gun access in the spotlight. Sensible people understand that not all people who suffer from depression or some form of social emotional disorder or mental disability have a propensity to kill. Yet for every 100 inner city instances of gun violence it seems there’s at least one kind of gun massacre that stands out. Whether it be Columbine or VA Tech, serious discussion must be had about protecting the civil liberties of people with disabilities while at the same time addressing access to firearms by the same population.
The gun manufacturers and organizations such as the NRA need to be pushed to ensure that each new gun manufactured in the United States is properly serialized just as vehicles are with a standardized code that is tamper-proof. These standardized codes, as registered with each state, would create a second layer of accountability, enabling law enforcement to track those guns from person to person, entity to entity and state to state. Ultimately, it would allow local and state police, DEA, ATF and FBI to trace a gun back to its owner, seller and manufacturer.
Gun sellers argue that tougher gun control laws would hurt their bottom-line and prevent “law-abiding” citizens from legally purchasing firearms; that tougher legislation would impede their Constitutional right to “bear arms.” This may be true. However, is the bottom-line more precious than the lives of people loss yearly to gun crime and gun accidents?
Our love affair with guns have to philosophically end. Responsible legislation regarding gun ownership must begin.
No one disagrees that responsible legislation is necessary to stem the tide of gun violence in our nation. Though many fear that stronger advocates are pushing to take their guns away, countries like Japan, Sweden and Norway have an argument with fewer gun crimes because gun ownership is not a legal right. I’m not that advocate. I believe that there is a place for responsible legislation that upholds the Constitution and protects lives. Together, let’s stop the post-modern, American Civil War over our guns. Our class thanks you for your ear and for your kind response.
I am a cosponsor of the Large Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act which would reinstate a ban on magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. The ban on multi-round magazines expired along with the federal assault weapons ban in 2004. I also am a cosponsor of a bill that would reinstate the ban on assault weapons and would expand the definition of assault weapons to close loopholes that allow gun manufacturers to work around the previous ban.
I support universal gun background checks, which prevent the transfer of firearms without a background check by non-licensed gun sellers. I am a cosponsor of “terror gap” legislation that would give the Attorney General discretionary authority to deny gun sales to individuals who are known or appropriately suspected to be engaged in terrorism.
There are 314 million people in our country and about 300 million firearms available for sale or possessed by civilians. While gun legislation may not change the values that shape popular culture, it can significantly reduce the likelihood that innocent children and adults will be the victims of gun violence.
The majority of Americans and the majority of thoughtful gun owners and hunters agree that there must be reasonable limits on gun ownership and weapons. We must institute common-sense limits, such as barring those with a history of mental instability, those with a history of violent crime or who are subject to restraining orders, and those whose names have been placed on a terrorist watch list from owning weapons. Straw purchasers and gun dealers should face firm penalties. There should be limits on how many firearms may be purchased in one month. Those who own firearms that are within the reach of children should have protective locks on their weapons.
As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I will continue to work for the passage of these and other reasonable gun safety measures to reduce the prevalence of gun violence in our country.
Sincerely,
RJD/bc
Sincerely,
Michael Lee Carter
---------------------------------------------
November 13, 2013
Dear Mr. Carter:
Thank you for contacting me about gun violence prevention. I appreciate knowing your views and share your concerns about gun violence.
Thank you for contacting me about gun violence prevention. I appreciate knowing your views and share your concerns about gun violence.
I am a cosponsor of the Large Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act which would reinstate a ban on magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. The ban on multi-round magazines expired along with the federal assault weapons ban in 2004. I also am a cosponsor of a bill that would reinstate the ban on assault weapons and would expand the definition of assault weapons to close loopholes that allow gun manufacturers to work around the previous ban.
I support universal gun background checks, which prevent the transfer of firearms without a background check by non-licensed gun sellers. I am a cosponsor of “terror gap” legislation that would give the Attorney General discretionary authority to deny gun sales to individuals who are known or appropriately suspected to be engaged in terrorism.
There are 314 million people in our country and about 300 million firearms available for sale or possessed by civilians. While gun legislation may not change the values that shape popular culture, it can significantly reduce the likelihood that innocent children and adults will be the victims of gun violence.
The majority of Americans and the majority of thoughtful gun owners and hunters agree that there must be reasonable limits on gun ownership and weapons. We must institute common-sense limits, such as barring those with a history of mental instability, those with a history of violent crime or who are subject to restraining orders, and those whose names have been placed on a terrorist watch list from owning weapons. Straw purchasers and gun dealers should face firm penalties. There should be limits on how many firearms may be purchased in one month. Those who own firearms that are within the reach of children should have protective locks on their weapons.
As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I will continue to work for the passage of these and other reasonable gun safety measures to reduce the prevalence of gun violence in our country.
Thank you again for your message. Please feel free to keep in touch.
Sincerely,
Richard J. Durbin
United States Senator
RJD/bc
