If the U.S. Supreme Court follows the words of the U.S. Constitution and the Court's own precedents, it should reverse the Appeals Court ruling and allow the District's law to stand.
Just because Paul Helmke says so, apparently.
Violence Policy Center:
Washington, DC's ban on handguns in the home has long protected DC's residents as measured by the District of Columbia's firearm suicide and overall
suicide rate.
I guess that all depends on who is being protected. If you follow the VPC link, it claims 5 reported suicides per 100,000 persons related to firearms in 2004, with no evidence that the absence of a gun would not have resulted in a different choice of method. In the same year, their murder rate was reported at 35.8 per 100,000, almost seven times higher than the national average of 5.5.
Clearly lowering the suicide rate (maybe?) is more important then letting people prevent their own murder. After all, think of the 'children'(read: violent repeat offenders) who will be killed if the residents of DC were allowed to defend themselves.
ReplyDeleteOr perhaps they are talking out their collective asses.
AE