The Daily Gamecock

Issue date: 10/8/08 Section: Viewpoints

Rachel Wright Third-year English student

Ten children die every day from a gun-related incident, and South Carolina isn't exactly doing its part to decrease this number.

When I turned on the news yesterday morning, I learned of four gun-related deaths. In two of them, a teenager was killed. Two nights ago, a 16-year-old was found with a gunshot wound to the head in Richland County. In Orangeburg, a teen was accidently shot by his friend while hunting. The teen died and his friend, who is also under 18, was charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Nationally, two children are killed a day on average by another child using a handgun. Children can't legally possess firearms, yet they are killing each other.

Last April, the South Carolina legislature thought it would be a good idea to lower the legal age to carry a concealed weapon from 21 to 18. Awesome. So now 18-year-olds can go to war, smoke cigs, vote and carry a concealed weapon. I mean, if you can't bring alcohol to your 18th birthday, why not bring your concealed weapon? I understand that 18-year-olds are legally considered adults, but I can't think of too many reasons why an 18-year-old would need to carry a concealed weapon.

On top of this well-reasoned law change, South Carolina also does not have a Child Access Prevention Law, which requires gun owners to store their firearm in a place inaccessible to children or use a locking device to secure the gun. If a child would happen to obtain a gun, the owner would be held criminally liable. What a great idea.

While it should be common sense to keep a gun away from a child, many states need a law to ensure that children don't accidentally stumble upon their daddy's revolver and mistake it for an accessory to their G.I. Joe. This law should be a no-brainer for South Carolina legislators. However, they have obviously had a bit of a brain fart.

I am not against an American's right to "bear arms." However, many states, especially South Carolina, need to increase laws restricting gun possession and use. Owning a gun does require a permit, but gun owners should be required to own child safety locks in all cases. They should also be required to attend several safety and gun education courses for as long as they own their gun. This would deter some from wanting to own a gun, and would thus weed out some of the more careless people seeking a gun permit.

By passing simple laws such as these, the safety of teenagers and children would greatly increase. While a 3-year-old accidentally shoots his little sister and a 16-year-old is murdered by his 14-year-old friend, the S.C. legislature sits dormant on the issue of gun laws. Until stricter laws are passed, we can expect gun-related violence among children and teens to increase. Intentional or unintentional, the bottom line is that gun-related deaths should not be so rampant among America's youth.

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