Data Bases • Custom Term Papers • Free Term Papers • Free Research Papers • Free Essays • Free Book Reports • Plagiarism? Links • Top 100 Term Paper Sites • Top 25 Essay Sites • Top 50 Essay Sites • Search 97,000 Papers @ DirectEssays.com • Search 101,000 Papers @ ExampleEssays.com • Search 90,000 Papers @ MegaEssays.com Free Essays • Term Paper Sites • Chuck III's Free Essays • Free College Essays • TermPaperSites.com • My Term Papers • Get Free Essays • Essay World • Planet Papers	Search Lots of Essays Back to Subjects - Legal Issues Brady Bill Brady Bill There have been many different gun control laws proposed in the past few years. One of the most recent and controversial ones has been the Brady Bill. The Brady Bill represented the first comprehensive, federal gun control in twenty-five years. The Brady Bill is an effective way of gun control with its background checks and five-day waiting period. The Brady Bill was originally named for anti-gun lobbyist James Brady. James Brady was Press Secretary to President Ronald Regan and was shot and paralyzed in an assassination attempt on the President. It took seven years to get the Bill passed through Congress till President Clinton could sign it into law in November of 1993, although the law would not become effective till February 28, 1994. The Bill required that states impose a five working day waiting period and a background check on all people wanting to purchase a handgun. During the five day waiting period local police officers in the buyer’s area were to, “make a reasonable effort” to determine if a buyer could posses a handgun. The Bill also moved the age of owning a handgun up to age 21 from age 18. An amendment to the Bill added that a federal instant background check system was to be install within five years of the Bill's passage to due away with the five-day waiting period. The system was installed but President Clinton wanted to keep the five-day period as a “cooling off” period for people who might be purchasing a gun for a “passion crime”(13). The Amendment also added that states can be exempt from the Brady Bill if they have there own waiting period or background check system in place already or during the life of the Bill. The effectiveness of the Brady Bill has been proven nationwide. From February 1994 to February 1998 the percentage of handguns used in homicides has dropped 31.9%. Although crime rates of crimes committed with handguns have risen a little in the United States from 49.8% in 1990 to 53.3% in 1997 the Brady Bill is still responsible of preventing “over 310,000 felons, fugitives, and other prohibited people from getting handguns”(12). In 1996 the federal government received over two million applications to check the backgrounds of people wanting to purchase and possess a handgun, and out of that two million plus people seventy thousand people were rejected. Three states out the twenty-three that still are using the Brady Bill, Arkansas, Texas, and Pennsylvania have all seen decreases in crimes committed with a handgun as well. In Arkansas under the Brady Bill 125 people were denied handgun purchases in 1994 down from because they were found to either be a felon, fugitive, or have had mental problems. In the state of Pennsylvania 486 people were denied handguns in 1994 because they were found not able to possess a handgun. And in Texas there were 1107 people denied in the same year as the other states. All these numbers of handgun purchase denials are up from years before the Brady Bill was enacted (Dobrin). Despite the effectiveness of the Brady Bill it had a short-lived life because in 1997 Sheriff Jay Pintz took the Brady Bill to the Supreme Court to have it over turned on the grounds of Constitutionality. The two states involved in the suit against the United States Government are Montana and Arizona. These two states claim that the Brady Bill violates the 10th Amendment. The amendment says that the federal government cannot force the state or local governments to carry out federal law. This split the Supreme Court Justices, because on one hand this Bill is for the good and safety of the American citizens and on the other hand the federal government is not paying or funding the states in anyway to help them with the checks. Even with the Brady Bill being shot down for its Constitutionality and all the criticisms towards the bill from the states and pro- gun advocates it is still one of the most effective ways that the United States have seen since the 1960’s. Once the kinks are worked out of this Bill it will be the United States best effort in protecting its people from the, “plaguing epidemic of gun violence.”(Timothy) Bibliography: Annotated Bibliography 1. Saletan, William. “The Moving Target of Gun Control.” Mother Jones Sept- Oct. 1999: Vol. 24 Issue5, 29-31. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Gives information on the background checks, regarding the Brady Bill. 2. Maier, Timothy W. “U.S. Victory in the Crime War?” World & I. Oct 1997: Vol. 12 Issue 10, 22-27. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 3. Dickens, Geoffrey. “Gun-Rights Forces Outgunned on TV.” Human Events Aug. 29,1997: Vol. 53 Issue 33, 20. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html View of the NRA on the Brady Bill and some of the dangers of the Brady Bill. 4. Kiefer, Francine. “Clinton’s legacy: gun-control president?” Christian Science Monitor April 29, 1999: Vol. 91 Issue 107, 9. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 5. Kiefer, Francine. “Wounding the Brady Bill.” Christian Science Monitor July 3, 1997: Vol. 89 Issue 153, 20. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 6. Richey, Warren. “Uncertainty over checking gun buyers.” Christian Science Monitor July 14, 1997: Vol. 89 Issue 159, 4-8. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr 5 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Information on the court decisions against part of the bill. 7. Auster, Bruce B. “A new round for and against the Brady bill.” U.S. News & World Report Sept. 9, 1996: 8-9. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5, 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill’s supporters and opponents. 8. Reeves, Richard. “The ‘repurposing’ of America.” Indianapolis Business Journal Nov. 4, 1996: 1b. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5, 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 9. Ebstein, Larry. “Matters of Life and Death.” Newsweek July 7, 1997: 30. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5, 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 10. Shays, Chris. “House rejects Gun Control Measures.” Human Events Vol. 55 Issue 25, 22. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 11. Lacayo, Richard; Dickerson, John F. “A small- bore success.” Time Feb 20, 1995: 47-50. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 12. Kahane, Leo H. “Gun lobbies and Gun Control: Senate Voting Patterns on the Brady Bill and the Assault Weapons Ban.” Atlantic Economic Journal Dec. 1999: Vol. 27 Issue 4, 384-394. MasterFILE Premier on-line. Apr. 5 2000 http://www.epnet.com/ehost/login.html Provides information on the Brady Bill. 12. GunCite- Gun Control: The Brady Bill http://www.guncite.com/gun_control_brady_bill.html Talks about parts of the Brady Bill. 13. http://handguncontrol.org/backgd.htm Tells about background checks and waiting periods that the Brady Bill made into law. Apr. 7 2000 14. http://www.handguncontrol.org/bradyhistory.htm Gives the history of the Brady Bill. Apr.9 2000 15. http://www.nraila.org Gives information about Brady Bill. Apr. Apr. 26 2000 16. http://www.census.gov/statab/www statistics on violence in the U.S. Apr. 26 2000 Word Count: 733
Copyright © 2005 College Term Papers, INC All Rights Reserved.