U.S. Government's Responsibility to Protect Citizens & Promote Justice.

The purpose of the U.S. Government is to create justice, promote the general welfare, offer a common defense, promote domestic tranquility, and to protect the blessing of liberty and prosperity (Murray, 2017). The government has the responsibility of protecting its citizens and their rights. Although the standards detailed in the constitution reassures protection to the citizens, they are sometimes ineffective. Domestic violence is still a big problem in the United States for centuries, and different laws against it have been passed and enacted into the constitution. One of the laws that the federal government has amended in the fight against domestic violence is the Gun Control Act. The amended Act makes it a crime for domestic abusers to own a gun under certain situations. For instance, under the Gun Control Act, it is a crime to possess a firearm or ammunition after conviction due to domestic violence. Cases of domestic violence affect men, women, and minors. Research by Babcock et al. shows that 1 in 4 women and 1 in 5 men have experienced domestic violence in their lifetime. The same research reported an incidence rate of 4.3 million minor and 5.1 million severe female victimizations (2016, p. 357). From these figures, gun violence accounts for a significant number. Therefore, gun control laws should not be control by the federal government, but the state government should handle it.

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Gun control Act is a federal law that criminalizes gun possession for domestic abusers under certain conditions. In the United States, gun laws vary considerably, and they are independent of federal firearm laws. In most states, gun laws are less restrictive than federal laws. However, this does not mean individual states are exempted from federal laws. Forty states have gun laws that protect the right to own and use firearms. Some of the states that do not have the laws are California, Maryland, Minnesota, and Iowa. The gaps in gun laws contribute to deaths and injuries related to gun violence. Okey ((2016) noted that looser gun laws cause the deaths of women at the hands of men in the state of South Carolina. States with strict gun laws have fewest numbers of deaths due to domestic violence. This means that the Federal government cannot enforce strict gun laws. Some of these states include Colorado, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey. These states should act as a benchmark for other states in enacting strict gun laws.

Those who oppose the idea that state governments should regulate gun control argue that the federal government has more authority to control gun ownership and harm associated with it. However, this is not the case since there is increased gun ownership, which allows cases of crimes to escalate. (Okey et al., 2016) argued that an increase in gun ownership facilitates unpredictability in any fight leading to more altercation and more homicide. Allowing states to govern gun laws is likely to reduce ownership and harmful effects like homicides. The federal government should not impose gun control because family law has been the domain of the state government. States have exercised power over family issues such as diversity, marriages, and custody, among others. Domestic violence is closely related to these issues, and the state government is in a better position to respond. Furthermore, resolving the cases of separation and divorce involves issues of spouse abuse. Therefore, is firearms are involved in domestic violence; gun control becomes a family law issue. Additionally, when Congress passed the Gun Control Act in 1996, the federal judiciary was not given exclusive power to resolve the problem of domestic violence. The Act provides that a person subject to domestic violence automatically loses the right to own a gun following an order issued by state judge (Okey et al., 2016). Through this, congress indirectly empowered the state to exercise power over gun control to protect those at risk of domestic violence.

Traditionally, gun violence has been viewed as a criminal justice problem that should remain under federal government (Carter, 2006). However, gun violence in American society is increasing each day, especially in local areas, and this shows that the federal government is not effective. Just like the issue of drugs that the federal government has unsuccessful resolved despite its extensive efforts, it will not resolve gun violence. Therefore, the state government is in a better position to respond to the local safety issue of its citizens. The issues of domestic violence require quick intervention, and states can accomplish this compared to the federal government. Besides, the state government has a large number of police officers who can investigate matters quickly compared to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The police and other law enforcers at the state level are in a better position to engage in a specialized campaign that will lead to a reduction in gun violence. States governments also have the primary power to enact and enforce criminal laws, including gun violence. The growing number of gun owners is becoming overwhelming for the federal government to regulate firearms. The workforce enforces the law will not be able to cover all states (Carter, 2006).

It has been argued that states have preemption for gun laws, and there is no need for making gun control a state regulation. However, state preemption has led to inconsistency between the state and federal regulation of guns (Carter, 2006). Some states have some statutes regulating the sale and use of firearms while others do not. This has allowed different regulations for different states, and this means that issue of gun control varies considerably across the country. In addition, the state statutes are not easily enforced, and penalties are weak. Making gun control, state regulation will promote uniformity and consistency at the state level. As a result, each state will concentrate its efforts to fight domestic gun violence (Okey et al., 2016).

Firearms are inherently considered as dangerous products to consumers. For this reason, supporters of federal gun control argue that regulation of consumer products is under the federal government, and so are guns. This is not a reason enough for the federal government to control guns. The purpose of regulatory agencies such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is to ensure uniform national regulation of products (Okey et al., 2016). In other words, these agencies regulate the manufacturing and distribution of firearms. However, since gun violence is a threat to family tranquility, the state government should regulate firearms. The state is also responsible for determining the compensation for the injuries and harm caused by products sold by businesses. States usually provide manufacturers with financial incentives to reduce the probability of injuries resulting from the use of dangerous products. This indicates that gun manufacturers are primarily governed by state law. State courts can also order restitution to pay a victim the full amount of loss caused by domestic violence crime.

In summary, the amended Gun Control Act that criminalizes gun possession for domestic abusers should not be controlled by the federal government. This is because domestic violence is a family issue, and the state government should handle it. The state government is addressing most of the family issues such as divorce, separation, and custody. Domestic violence usually involves spouses and their children, and this means that the state government is in a better position to regulate gun violence related to domestic violence. The Act does not exempt states from passing judgment to domestic abusers. For example, a state court order can make a person automatically lose his or her gun is found to be subject to domestic violence. The state government should impose a gun Control Act because domestic violence affects local areas. A large number of law enforcers in the state level who can help address the issue of gun violence is another reason why states should enforce gun laws. Allowing states to enforce gun laws will also promote consistency between the state and federal governments in the fight against domestic violence. In general, states have the primary authority of enacting and enforcing laws against crime.

Work Cited

Babcock, Julia, et al. "Domestic Violence Perpetrator Programs: A Proposal for Evidence-Based Standards in the United States." (2016).

Carter, Gregg Lee. Gun control in the United States: a reference handbook. ABC-CLIO, 2006.

Murray, Hallie. Limiting Federal Powers: The Tenth Amendment. Enslow Publishing, LLC, 2017.

Okey, Mary Summersby, and Sarah Cohen. "Gun Control and Domestic Violence: An Intersectional Examination." (2016).