California has a higher than average rate of gun crime despite the allegedly universal background checks the have.
I think that makes you wrong.
Are you C_Clayton_Jones? THAT is not even the question, but I am not surprised you don't understand.
But you are wrong about California...
Want a Better Gun Policy? Look at California
Griffin Dix, Ph.D.
After the recent mass shootings came mass confusion over how to prevent gun deaths. Calls for action ran to extremes. In despair some said murderers will always get weapons that are incredibly lethal; we are helpless against the gun lobby. Others called for banning all firearms. But there is a better way. Californias gun lawswhile far from perfectprovide a model that works.
Since the peak firearm mortality rate in 1993 California has cut its firearm mortality rate by 53% to a new low of 8.1 per 100,000 (according to the CDCs latest 2009 data). That compares to a decline of only 30% in the rest of the nation, where the firearm mortality rate is 10.2 far higher than Californias.
Before 1997 Californias firearm mortality rate was consistently higher than that of the rest of the nation. But as Californias gun laws took effect the states gun death rate dropped lower. Of course many factors besides gun laws affect firearm mortality rates. But gun laws help and California has passed more than forty of them since the 1989 assault weapon mass shooting in a Stockton schoolyard that led to the states assault weapons ban and a ten round limit on ammunition magazine capacity.
Other important California laws curb illegal gun trafficking by requiring background checks on all gun sales or transfers (including at gun shows) and limiting handgun purchases to one per month, prohibit gun purchases by persons guilty of certain violent misdemeanors, and facilitate crime gun tracing and recovery of illegally owned weapons.
Additional laws require licensing of gun dealers. In California handgun buyers must pass a written safety test and hands-on demonstration. Laws that encourage safe gun storage help reduce gun suicide, a major component of firearm mortality. New handgun models sold in California must meet state safety standards.
Americans overwhelmingly support measures like these, which do not interfere with the rights of law-abiding citizens. Gun violence is a complex, multi-faceted problem with no easy fix. No wonder many are confused about how we can cut our gun death rate and protect our families. Californias gun laws are a model the rest of the country should look to in this hour of sorrow, confusion and much-needed discussion.