...Betty Waltermire Critical Issues in Criminal Justice JUS-250 April 11, 2014 Guns, Schools and Mental Illness The above five words should never be placed into or used in a sentence together, yet, these five words are almost constantly in the news. The Second Amendment has been getting its share of attention during the last fifty years and specifically in the last twenty years. Here is where the arguments begin and end. No one can agree on the meaning of or what was intended when the amendment was actually written. The Second Amendment states, “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed” (Second Amendment) . This specific amendment dates back to England before Magna Carta when the Protestants were allowed to possess and carry guns although Catholics were not allowed. The interpretation of this depends on who is doing the interpreting (Second Amendment (1791)). The first school shooting happened in Greencastle, Pennsylvania in July of 1764, which killed the headmaster and either nine or ten children (School Shootings in the U.S. 1900-Present). Throughout the eighteen hundreds there were numerous school shootings. Also in the nineteen hundreds there were school shootings and America did not start the upheavals about guns and shooting children in schools until the late 1980’s or early 1990’s. In...
Words: 809 - Pages: 4
...Nature of the case Otis McDonald joined three other Chicago residents in filing a lawsuit claiming that his Second Amendment right to bear arms was being infringed by a handgun ban established in 1982 in Chicago. He argued that the selective incorporation process afforded by the Fourteenth Amendment applied the liberties of the Second Amendment to individual states, not just federal enclaves. Concise Rule of Law The Fourteenth Amendment clauses of Due Process and Privileges and Immunities through selective incorporation requires states to honor liberties provided by the Second Amendment for citizens to bear arms. Facts Otis McDonald, an elderly (age 76) retired maintenance engineer had lived in the Morgan Park suburb of Chicago since...
Words: 479 - Pages: 2
...The 19th amendment was passed on August 18,1920.This amendment granted women the right to vote.Prior to this new reformation,women were seen as inferior and were limited to being housewives and focusing more on motherhood.Women were generally frowned upon if they tried to attain higher occupations such as: doctors, lawyers, and teachers.Needless to say, during these times women were deprived of many privileges that men had naturally;one of these depravities was the right to vote.Thanks to the 19th amendment,this is no longer. The 19th amendment has left a major imprint in American history.Though victorious,it was not an easy fight to gain this amendment.It was a fight of 70 years starting with women such as: Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth...
Words: 748 - Pages: 3
...Second Amendment In this research paper, I will argue for the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment deals with the rights of United States citizens to bear, and keep arms. Many people are against the Second Amendment and want to abolish it, and have guns removed from United States citizens. The Constitution was written to protect the rights of the people in the United States, and by taking away guns would infringe on our constitutional rights. How would citizens defend themselves in a life or death situation if guns were to be taken away? The Fourteenth Amendment "No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; ... " (Taylor; par. 21) was integrated with the Second Amendment right, to keep and bear arms for the purpose of self-defense. Self-defense includes, protecting your-self and family from imminent harm, and being able to protect one’s personal property. The use of deadly force maybe necessary to help in defending your-self from an intruder entering your home, or to prevent a kidnapping, murder, sexual assault, robbery, or domestic violence. Regulations have been implemented through-out state and local governments to help aid in gun ownership. Reasonable restrictions have been executed to control, that who can possess a gun. To name a few gun control restrictions for gun ownership are people who have...
Words: 1377 - Pages: 6
...gives it a second thought to obey the rules of the road or to automatically pay for your groceries at the store. Laws are in place to ensure a peaceful existence for all of society, and to preserve the rights of individual Americans and businesses. Individuals who choose to disobey the laws will be punished. This paper will put the following three topics into perspective; the structure and nature of the constitution, the role and function of law in society, and the judiciary system. The Organization of the Constitution The structure of the constitution is set up to ensure that each section or branch does not exceed its authority. “The constitution has a preamble, seven articles, and twenty-seven amendments (Melvin, 2011)." The "Bill of Rights" are comprised of the first 10 amendments. “The first three articles establish a three part system of government with these three branches: the legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch (Melvin, 2011).” The first amendment guarantees each citizen the freedom of religion, speech, and press. The second amendment ensures citizens the right to bear arms. The third amendment guards against forcing citizens to house and feed soldiers. The fourth amendment guards against unreasonable search and seizure of person or property. The fifth amendment guarantees the right to a trial by jury and protects against a person from being charged for the same crime twice which is called double jeopardy. The sixth amendment guarantees...
Words: 699 - Pages: 3
...Persuasive Research Paper Dominique Harris ENG/215 September 30, 2013 Bill Morgan Persuasive Research Paper Restrictions on Guns for the Sake of Life Volsky (2012), "I support the Second Amendment” (para. 2) Governor Rick Scott (R) stated December 2012 when questioned by anchor Soledad O’Brien about which reforms, if any, he would support. Gun control is one of the leading controversial issues society faces in America to date. The government is faced with the issue of limiting assault rifles with a trite and establishing tougher gun laws vs. the second amendment. President Obama said it best “the country’s background check system for gun buyers is so weak it makes the United States vulnerable to mass shootings” (Rucker, 2013, para. 2). That statement alone should end any controversy on the issue of gun control. Regulating individual’s right to bear arms certainly would bring a since of safety to our society. In order for that to happen, government will have to do more than just prohibited sales of guns. In everyone’s community someone knows an individual who owns gun e.g., for protection or hunting. To regulate the rights to bear arms authorities would have to confiscate everyone’s guns to make America safer. I personally would like that to happen because guns kill, accidentally and on purpose. Take a look at the bigger picture “every day in the U.S., an average of 289 people are shot. Eight-six of them die: 30 are murdered, 53 kill themselves, two die accidentally...
Words: 1640 - Pages: 7
...The District of Columbia passed the 1975 Firearms Control Regulations Act. This act made it illegal to own handguns, automatic firearms, or high capacity rifles and prohibited the possession of unregistered firearms. Dick heller a special police officer in the District of Columbia carried a firearm as part of his job. He was granted access into federal buildings with the gun, but the new provision made it illegal to possess in his own home. Along with Dick Heller, five other D.C. residents tried to seek resolution to not being able to have a handgun and challenge the constitutionality of this problem.They filed lawsuit in the District Court for the District of Columbia. This was dismissed by District Court Judge Ricardo M. Urbina. The case...
Words: 372 - Pages: 2
...The Second Amendment in the United States Constitution states, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” In other words, the people are given the privilege to personally own a gun as a form of self defense. This amendment ensures a free state. It is a common debated about what exactly the Second Amendment is saying. Many people say it is one of the worst worded amendment in the United State Constitution. Some say that it states the right of each individual person, just like many of the other amendments, but others say the word Militia is incorporated in there for a reason. The second amendment took a significant role in both the Heller v DC and Miller v US. ? Jack Miller and Frank Layton were arrested for illegally carrying around a shotgun in public across the border of two states. They were arrested because they did not have a stamp on their gun that signifies they paid the taxes that were responsible to pay when owning a gun. This was necessary under the NFA, National Firearms Act. Miller argued that this violated his right to bear arms. The court understood the amendment as a right to a group of people brought together collectively for their same defense, rather than an individual right for their personal defense. It was decided that only guns can be used for militia service purposes only but this case did open the door to understanding and looking at the second amendment...
Words: 1342 - Pages: 6
...ball in getting some sort of law into the making. Advocates of gun control now had some hard evidence to make a stand against gun rights activists. The senate legislation in 1999 applied the mandatory three-day waiting period for background checks of potential gun buyers initiated by the Brady Bill, which was set forth in 1993. The House approved a bill to limit the background check to twenty-four hours, but the bill was shot down after the tragedy in 1999. Now all guns sold are gun control is needed to understand the sides and issues. Gun control is an effort to stop the rise in violent crime by strengthening laws on the ownership of firearms. Persons in the group against gun control believe that gun control is wrong, and that it is a violation of constitutional rights. Those in favor of gun control believe that gun control is good, that the Second Amendment does not apply to regular citizens, and that guns should be taken out of the hands of criminals. There are several major anti-gun control groups. These groups include the National Rifle Association (NRA), and the Gun Owners of America (GOA) . The NRA is a national group dedicated to the upholding of the Second amendment of the...
Words: 801 - Pages: 4
...massacres. To the eyes of a gun control advocate, it seems like a no brainer. After all, the less guns on the street will result in less gun related deaths. In the United States, 33,636 people have died due to a firearm in 2013 (Alpers, Philip).That number accounts for murders, homicides and suicides across the country. Thousands of people that year lost their life due to a firearm incident and the number keeps growing each year. Many gun control advocates wonder why it is so difficult to implement stricter gun laws in the world's greatest democracy. The misinterpretation of the second amendment is what's holding back the U.S. Many people that are against gun control throw around the Second Amendment a whole lot. What many have failed to realize is that the Second Amendment protects the right of militias to own guns, not the individual. Let's take a look at what the Second Amendment states. The Second Amendment to the Constitution states "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep...
Words: 1584 - Pages: 7
...changed it’s called and amendment. Among the amendments are the bill of rights and the reconstruction amendments. In this paper I will discuss how and why amendments become part of the constitution, what were some problems with the original document that motivated the adoption of the bill of rights, the effects of the bill of rights and the reconstruction amendments and their effects. How and why do amendments become part of the constitution? When the constitution was written, the Framers knew that the constitution would and could be amended. Article V of the constitution tells how an amendment can become a part of the constitution. It takes two steps to add an amendment to the constitution. The first step is the proposal. An amendment can be proposed by either two-thirds vote in congress, which includes both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The second step is ratification; the amendment has to be ratified by wither three-fourths of the state legislatures or by state conventions in three-fourths of the states. An amendment can only be ratified after two-thirds of the House and Senate approve of the proposal and send it to the states for a vote and then three-fourths of the states must affirm the proposed amendment. Congress has set a term of seven years for ratification. The second way would require a constitutional convention to be called by two-thirds of the legislatures of the states. The convention can then propose as many amendments as it sees fit. Those...
Words: 1409 - Pages: 6
...Miguel Reyes 27 Amendments 1st Amendment- People have freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and the right to petition the Government. 2nd Amendment- protects the right to own guns. 3rd Amendment- guarantees that the army cannot force homeowners to give them room and board. 4th Amendment- protects the people from the government improperly taking property, papers, or people, without a valid warrant based on probable cause. 5th Amendment- protects people from being held for committing a crime unless they are properly indicted, that they may not be tried twice for the same crime, that you need not be forced to testify against yourself, and from property being taken without just compensation. It also contains due process guarantees. 6th Amendment-A person has the right to a fair and speedy trial by a jury. 7th Amendment- guarantees a jury trial in federal civil court cases. 8th Amendment- guarantees that punishments will be fair, and not cruel, and that extraordinarily large fines will not be set. 9th Amendment- is simply a statement that other rights aside from those listed may exist, and just because they are not listed doesn't mean they can be violated. 10th Amendment- Any powers that the Constitution does not give to the federal government belong to the states 11th Amendment- more clearly defines the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court concerning a suit brought against a state by a citizen of another state...
Words: 586 - Pages: 3
...Second Amendment: Still Valid after 200 years Jeremiah A. Dozier ITT Technical Institute The subject of this research paper is on a particular subject that has spurred an ongoing debate for many years, the Second Amendment. To this day many Americans have raised the question is the Second Amendment still valid after 200 years? The answer to that question is YES! When the founding fathers signed the Constitution in this document there are many Articles and the First ten are known as the bill rights and the first one is the right to free speech, most everyone is in agreement that is one of the most important rights as citizens. Now the Second Amendment which states, “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed”. In this paper it is the authors’ intension to show why this Amendment is important today and in the future. The Second Amendment has been a part of this country since the very beginning of our great nation. Fast forward to the present, they are now people saying the Second Amendment is no longer valid or needed. How can that be we not need this right or it no longer applies to the present day? One of the main reasons most people say we don’t need this fundamental right is because of the recent waves of shootings around this country. The only response is to put a ban on firearms or limit how many rounds a weapons magazine can hold. The Second Amendment is in place as...
Words: 2105 - Pages: 9
...it to “establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity…” It was created to protect the citizens of the United States and our freedoms. The Constitution is what sets the US apart from many other countries. The Articles of Confederation, Bill of Rights, and Constitution are arguably the most important documents in United States History. They were the documents that put in place the first government of the United States of America. Although written over two hundred years ago, the Constitution is timeless in the ideas and principles that it promotes. As of late, the relevancy of the Constitution to today’s society has been called into question, more specifically our second amendment. Does the Constitution of the United States with the inclusion of our second amendment right continue to insure domestic tranquility? The United States Constitution, including the second amendment, is a healthy document, which still serves our nation exceptionally well and continues to insure domestic tranquility. The evolution of society and recent events may show that the second amendment right can be endangering our country and doing the opposite of protecting it. “Terrorism, school shootings, and other modern circumstances make guns more dangerous nowadays.” (Gelinas) Most violent crimes are committed with guns; therefore if they are banned there will be a decrease in violent...
Words: 1113 - Pages: 5
...The second amendment within our constitution states "A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." The language of this amendment has created considerable debate as to what it really means. America has stood strong by what our founding fathers accomplished in drafting the United States Constitution which can also be called the “Supreme Law” of our land. Gun control advocates usually always invoke the second amendment in arguments related to stricter gun laws while the anti-gun side claims the second amendment does not include rights of an individual. The second amendment states “The right of the people to keep and bear arms” thus any attempt to set unreasonable limits on gun ownership does in fact infringe on our constitutional rights because according to our fore fathers we have a right to own firearms for any reason we as a free society deem necessary which may include hunting, self-defense or collecting. Firearms have played a major role in the shaping of American history. From hunting to sporting, collecting and self-defense, Americas’ fascination with firearms can be traced to the American Revolution where armed citizens gained independence through a sustained revolt. Not only did firearms have a role in gaining independence, they were a necessary tool for survival. In order for family’s to survive hunting was the only means to provide food. In the days of the “wild...
Words: 1007 - Pages: 5
