Our Gun Laws Work Well Then ...

[youngmafbog]

http://news.sky.com/story/1026466/hampshire-kidnap-two-arrests-over-abduction

Not even in the inner city, a quite coastal town by the New Forest.

[jackthehat]

I think you'll find that is still illegal to have a handgun in this country...

[sandyRoe]

Are you suggesting that if the pensioners had had guns the outcome of this would have been different? Do we need more guns in the hands of the public?

[McMouse]

// quite coastal// sounds like it's near the sea.

[Gromit]

Our gun laws do work well.

If you are comparIng this with 20 infants being murdered then there is no comparison.

Mass killings such as those which are a very regular occurrence in the US are fortunately very rare here.

[Old_Geezer]

Until other countries manage to sort their gun loving culture out, the more civilised remain at risk of firearms being obtained outside of their boundary and smuggled in. Bound to get the occasional incident where one wouldn't normally anticipate it.

Meanwhile no law will stop bad behaviour but hopefully reduce it, and allow the law enforcement to try to catch those who act badly to others.

[FredPuli43]

Yes, and our laws against murder, gbh, burglary and parking on yellow lines work well too. No matter what the law says, no matter how severe the punishment (5 years minimum for possessing a firearm as a trespasser in a building, or in a public place, or for use in crime, or resist arrest, or with intent to injure or alarm); someone somewhere will contravene it.

[joko]

how would you suggest they are changed then?

i mean, what more can they do than ban them? extra ban them?
make them 'extremely illegal' as opposed to just 'illegal'?

regardless of the laws in place, some people will always break them.

[chas2008]

Fredpuli43, i was under the impression after Hungeford & Dunblane it was a mandatory 5 years for an unlicensed firearm, unfortunately its rarely applied,18months/2years being quite common...

[FredPuli43]

Not quite. chas. It's 5 years for having any firearm as a trespasser in a building, or with criminal intent etc (as above)

It's also 5 years for having certain firearms at all, whatever the intent or circumstances: such weapons as semi and fully automatic weapons, rocket launchers, and "any firearm with a barrel of less than 30 cms in length or which is less than 60 cms in length overall, other than an air weapon, a muzzle loading gun or a firearm designed as signalling apparatus " (apparently this is to stop handguns) [FirearmsAct 1968 s5(1) and s5 (1A), and s51A )