By CODY ELLS
Sheridan High School Student
Editor’s Note: The Sheridan Student Column is brought to readers by Sheridan High School’s 10th grade English class, taught by Abigayle Williams.
One of the most controversial and debated topics on the news today is whether or not citizens should be able to carry a concealed firearm. I believe that all law-abiding citizens should have the right to carry a concealed handgun.
One reason that citizens should have the right to carry a concealed firearm is that it is protected by the Second Amendment. Another reason is that most people who carry concealed firearms are law-abiding citizens and they do not misuse their firearms. The last reason is that people who carry firearms could help stop a major public shooting spree.
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.”
According to ProCon.org, the Second Amendment requires states to permit some form of concealed carry for a sense of security outside of the home. Pewresearch.org stated that 67 percent of all gun owners have a gun for a sense of security, whether that be inside or outside of home. Thirty-eight percent of all gun owners have them for hunting, and 30 percent have them for sport or recreational shooting. The rest of the gun owners have them for their collection or job. Heritage.org states that, “Gun control laws do not correlate with decreased violence, and instead hamper the ability of law-abiding citizens to defend themselves and their families.”
According to ProCon.org, most adults who carry firearms are law-abiding citizens who do not misuse their firearms. The Washington Post noted that 79 percent of all gun-related homicides were by people who used someone else’s firearm. Eighteen percent were known to be legal gun owners.
Whenever a firearm is purchased legally in the United States, there is a background check in all cases. The Christian Science Monitor stated, “The number of incidents in which concealed weapon carriers kill innocent people is a fraction of one percent of all gun-related homicides.”
Another reason that carrying a concealed firearm is a good thing is that a permit carrier can react to a shooting much faster than the authorities can. According to ProCon.org, the average reaction to an emergency call is 11 minutes. During the event of the massacre of the New Life Megachurch in 2007, a man who was carrying a concealed firearm reacted to the event and shot the shooter. ProCon.org also stated that overall shootings decreased by 84 percent after concealed carry laws were passed.
Permitting concealed handguns also decreases crime. According to ProCon.org, “States that implemented ‘shall-issue’ concealed carry laws reduced murders by 8.5 percent, rapes by 5 percent, aggravated assaults by 7 percent, and robbery by 3 percent.” States with stricter gun laws are reported to have higher crime rates.
In conclusion, law-abiding citizens of the United States should have the right to carry a concealed firearm for their own personal safety, outside their homes. Concealed carry is guaranteed by the Second Amendment, and it could stop a mass shootings and other crimes that may not be dependent on police reacting soon enough. Concealed carry decreases overall murder rates by firearms. I believe that concealed carry is a right that the government needs to retain.