In the wake of recent killings at the hands of police, many believe that the American police force needs to be defunded, less funded, or otherwise reformed. The outcry takes aim at qualified immunity, over-policing, white supremacy, no-knock warrants, and more. But, almost all of the criticism of police brutality includes a denouncement of the police’s use of lethal force, including guns.
Yet, in a country with 400 million guns in circulation and over 14,000 gun-related homicides per year, the suggestion that police cede guns is untenable. Police are supposed to protect us and our property by stopping crimes. And many of these crimes are committed using guns.
As long as gun violence remains prevalent, the police must be armed to effectively do their job. Tasers only have a reliable range of approximately 10 feet. Knives and physical force are no match for guns. Absent technological innovation, police must fight guns with guns.
However, legislation tackling America’s gun problem primes police to loosen their grip on guns. Earlier this year, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the Bipartisan Background Checks Act. The bill extends background check requirements to most gun transfers, including those between private parties. In addition, the House approved the Enhanced Background Checks Act, which gives authorities 10 business days for federal background checks before a gun sale. This is a departure from the current rule, which allows sales if the government cannot complete complicated background checks of prospective buyers within 3 days. The problem is that many guns are obtained illegally or not from vendors who perform background checks. Even if these bills survive the Senate, more sweeping reform is needed.
A ban on assault-style weapons is past-due1. The ban should be accompanied by buybacks and amnesties to encourage forfeiture and safe destruction of such guns. Additionally, gun registration requirements should be tightened. Gun owners should be required to report any lost, stolen, missing, or sold firearms in order to prevent theft of guns or illegal transfer of guns. Australia often serves as a case study for the transformational potential of gun reform. But, many believe it was actually laws imposing ownership requirements, rather than the bans, that was responsible for the Australia’s subsequent decline in gun violence.
It’s even possible that the pervasive threat of guns normalizes police use of other forms of lethal force, such as chokeholds. Opponents of banning chokeholds say that guns would become the default method of dealing with a threat, should chokeholds be prohibited. But, if gun crime was less common, police may not need to carry guns on their bodies (e.g., could keep them in their cars for backup), may use less dangerous guns (e.g., guns with manual safeties), or may keep guns unloaded. Then, a ban on chokeholds would shift the reliance to less lethal methods, such as tasers, other restraints, or pepper spray.
In March, the House passed a police reform bill, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. The bill offers comprehensive reform of federal policing standards, including prohibiting racial profiling; banning chokeholds, carotid holds, and no-knock warrants; and creating a police misconduct registry. The bill does not mandate the changes at a state or local level, but conditions federal funding on compliance with the new federal standards.
Congress missed President Biden’s target date for passage of the bill in May. Instead, the bill is stalled in the evenly-split Senate. The sticking point appears to be the ending of qualified immunity. The rampancy of guns props up opponents’ arguments. Afterall, how can we ask police officers to respond to situations involving firearms, while risking personal liability should they wield their weapon? The elephant in the room has yet to be addressed.
Every time there is a mass shooting in the U.S., demands for gun reform are renewed. But, it’s not long before the issue falls to the wayside. Yet, police killings should serve as a reminder of the need for gun reform and rekindle our fervor. Gun reform is a precursor for meaningful police reform.
1 In 1994, the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 was actually passed, which prohibited assault-type weapons for a 10-year period. But, Congress failed to reauthorize it in 2004.
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