1 / 20

Illegal Gun Policy in the United States: Federal Gaps and State Legislative Contrasts Nina E. Vinik Legal Community Agai

Illegal Gun Policy in the United States: Federal Gaps and State Legislative Contrasts Nina E. Vinik Legal Community Against Violence. Overview of Federal Gun Policy . Federal Regulatory Framework Governing Purchases and Sales of Firearms .

nikita
Download Presentation

Illegal Gun Policy in the United States: Federal Gaps and State Legislative Contrasts Nina E. Vinik Legal Community Agai

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Illegal Gun Policy in the United States: Federal Gaps and State Legislative Contrasts Nina E. Vinik Legal Community Against Violence

  2. Overview of Federal Gun Policy

  3. Federal Regulatory Framework Governing Purchases and Sales of Firearms • License required of gun manufacturers, importers and dealers (FFLs) • Certain persons prohibited from owning firearms (felons, minors, persons with mental illness, etc.) • Background checks on firearm transfers by FFLs to screen for prohibited persons • ATF enforces gun laws regarding purchase and sale

  4. Potential Gaps in Federal Gun Policy • No background checks on transfers by unlicensed sellers (“private sale loophole”) • Gun shows are a particular concern – estimated to be the source of over 10,000 trafficked guns every year

  5. Gaps in Federal Gun Policy • No regulation of 50 caliber sniper rifles • No regulation of • military-style • assault weapons • (ban on assault weapons • expired in 2004)

  6. Potential Gaps in Federal Gun Policy • No consumer product safety oversight; gun industry is exempt from Consumer Product Safety Act • No safe storage requirements

  7. Potential Gaps in Federal Gun Policy • Incomplete records in the NICS database for background checks • Omissions from the federal list of prohibited purchasers • Limits on ATF’s enforcement capacity/authority • Restrictions on state and local administrative and civil proceedings

  8. Overview of State Gun Regulation

  9. Role of State Regulation Fills gaps in federal law Addresses concerns of specific communities and regions Improves community health and safety Acts as a catalyst for broader reform

  10. A Sampling of State Gun Laws • State laws aimed at keeping guns out of the hands of dangerous individuals • State laws aimed at attacking the sources of illegal guns • State laws regulating civilian ownership of military-style weapons • State laws ensuring access to firearm transfer information by law enforcement

  11. Laws Aimed at Keeping Guns Out of the Hands of Dangerous Individuals

  12. Laws Aimed at Attacking the Sources of Illegal Guns

  13. Laws Ensuring Access to Firearm Transfer Information by Law Enforcement

  14. Laws Regulating Civilian Ownership of Military-Style Weapons

  15. How Legal Community Against Violence Can Help • Legal Community Against Violence (LCAV) is a national public interest law center dedicated to preventing gun violence • LCAV is the country's only organization devoted exclusively to providing legal assistance in support of gun violence prevention • LCAV provides legal assistance to community leaders and advocates seeking local and statewide regulatory solutions to prevent gun violence

  16. LCAV: Who we Serve • Mayors, City Council Members, County Supervisors and other Local Officials • Government Attorneys • Law Enforcement Officials • State Legislators and Agency Officials • Gun Violence Prevention Activists

  17. LCAV: What We Do • Research and analysis of current law and options for reform • Develop regulatory policies and model laws • Draft laws and regulations for specific jurisdictions • Explain the legal significance of existing and proposed laws • Review existing and proposed laws and offer recommendations for improvement

  18. LCAV Publications • Regulating Guns in America – An Evaluation and Comparative Analysis of Federal, State and Selected Local Gun Laws • Originally published 2006; 2008 edition now available

  19. LCAV Website: www.lcav.org

  20. Legal Community Against Violence 268 Bush Street, #555 San Francisco, CA 415-433-2062 Illinois Address: P.O. Box 7077 Evanston, IL 847-733-1855 To request assistance: Contact Nina Vinik, Legal Director at 847-733-1855 or nina@lcav.org

More Related