Maximum penalty by the law should be applied to gun violence offenders

Jan 12, 2023 Letters

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Dear Editor,

The only reason any citizen would carry an illegal firearm in this country or any country for that matter would be to kill, damage or hurt people usually the innocent. They would not want to own an illegal firearm to earn a living, to do a social good, but to cheat, rob or kill.

Our laws for illegal firearms are weak, incomprehensible, and annoying. Three to five years imprisonment is ridiculous. ‘Upon release’ is like begging the criminal to go and do the same thing again or recidivism. Ten to fifteen years of imprisonment if not life is a better penalty.

The message in law enforcement and the justice system should be zero tolerance for illegal firearms. Further, the laws of Guyana, despite variation in interpretations, sets out the requirements for concealed carry of a handgun, and what constitutes legal versus illegal possession or carrying. And while clearly the commission of a violent crime with a firearm versus the possession of a firearm by someone not licensed/permitted to do so are substantively different behaviors, often the term “gun crimes” conflates the two criminal offenses. In 2019, it is estimated that there were more than 480,000 violent crimes committed with a firearm in the United States, representing a 68% decrease when compared to 1993 (Jake Charles, 2022). In addition, in 2019, for example, the rate of non-fatal firearm violence victimization (i.e., robbery, assault/battery, rape) among Blacks in the USA was 287 per 100,000 population, more than double the rate of 134 per 100,000 among whites and similar to the 251 per 100,000 rate among Hispanics (Jake Charles,2022). Unfortunately, data on gun fatality/gun violence statistics for Guyana cannot be easily acquired for a local study or letter to the media.

Despite the seriousness of these violent crimes committed with a firearm, not only are a substantial portion not reported to the police, but of those that are reported to the police, most do not result in an arrest. The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimated that in 2019 less than one-third of all aggravated assaults and robberies with a firearm in the United States were cleared by an arrest (Jake Charles, 2022 ).  Further, when it comes to responses by the justice system to gun violence, much of the focus has been on the sanctions that can be imposed on violent crimes committed with firearms (Jake Charles, 2022). In many countries much of the response by Legislatures, Prosecutors and Judges to violent crimes committed with a gun, has been based on the understandable recognition that these violent crimes pose a significant danger to the public, and that those individuals who commit these offenses need to be incapacitated, punished, and not released until they no longer pose such a significant risk to public safety. However, here in Guyana these penalties need to be stricter to communicate the seriousness of the crime/offence and to act as a deterrent. In addition, in Guyana, a firearm license can be acquired for the ‘right cost’, it is alleged by many, without satisfying the statuary requirements of obtaining such a permit and security services, is a name that can be abused at a high cost in dollars.

Given the limited degree to which the Criminal Justice System is able to apprehend and sanction those who commit violent crimes with a firearm, due to not all crimes being reported to the police and low clearance rates, the logical alternative is to find those who may be illegally possessing firearms under the view that some of them may be driving the gun violence problem. Granted, while possession of a firearm is necessary to commit a violent crime with a gun, not all of those who possess a gun (either legally or illegally) intend to use it that way- but these are few in numbers. It is also known in Guyana that there is large scale rental of firearms to criminal operatives in which case a fee is paid, or the loot shared.

In order to decrease the gun violence in Guyana caused by illegal firearms I would like to suggest that:

1. To see significant change there should be major legislation overhaul – not just one new law. Lead researcher Julian Santaella-Tenorio from Columbia University in a review of 130 studies on Gun Control; that had been conducted across 10 different countries, including the US, Australia, Brazil, South Africa, and Austria; stated that “when countries pass several laws at once that worked together to overhaul the country’s firearm code, gun-related deaths tended to decrease” (Epidemiologic Reviews, 2016). Santaella- Tenorio and colleagues also indicated that that these overhauls generally included:

• Banning “weapons that are actually very powerful”, for example, automatic weapons.
• Implementing background checks.

For example, in South Africa in 2000, the Firearm Control Act contained all these measures, and saw a 13.6 percent reduction in firearm homicides every single year for the next five years (Epidemiologic Reviews, 2016).

A similar overhaul law was introduced in Australia in 1996 in the wake of a mass murder, and according to one of the studies analysed, overall firearm death rates decreased by 14 percent the following year. There also hasn’t been another mass shooting in the country in the 20 years since (Epidemiologic Reviews, 2016).

2. Restriction to access to guns and their purchase. This includes requiring permits and licenses for purchasing guns. The above measure has been proven to be associated with reductions in firearm deaths. Also, the researchers further indicated that “Laws restricting the purchase of (e.g., background checks) and access to (e.g., safer storage) firearms are also associated with lower rates of intimate partner homicides and firearm unintentional deaths in children, respectively” (Epidemiologic Reviews, 2016). In the USA, in 2007, Missouri got rid of laws requiring people to have a permit to purchase a firearm. Following this legislation change, one of the analysed studies found that Missouri’s homicide rate increased by 25 percent. No other changes in legislation appear to be able to explain the change (Epidemiologic Reviews, 2016).
3. Three Strikes Law for Firearms in Guyana. For several decades, I have been campaigning for a three strikes law where whoever is involve in whatever kind of arm robbery using instruments to kill such as guns etc. on the committing of such third offence,they should be sentence to life imprisonment. This would act also as a strong deterrent to persons wanting to rob or physically hurt persons in Guyana. Recently, the Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared a state of emergency in parts of the capital Kingston and in some central and western parishes in Jamaica in an attempt to control rising crime linked to gun violence (Reuters, November 15th, 2022). The above provides compelling evidence that gun control really does save lives. And the serious points stressed in this letter or research confirm that the maximum penalty by the law should be applied to gun violence offenders.

Sincerely,

Haji Dr. Roshan Khan (Snr)

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• 2022, Haji Dr. Roshan Khan (Snr), illegal firearms, Jake Charles, Legislatures, Prosecutors

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