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Period: to
Evolution of Gun Control
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Bill of Rights ratified
The Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution is ratified. The Second
Amendment states: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security
of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be
infringed." -
NRA Created
Union Army officers Col. William C. Church and Gen. George Wingate found the National Rifle
Association (NRA) to "promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis." -
Sullivan Law signed
New York Governor John A. Dix signs the Sullivan Law. This statute requires licenses for the
purchase of a concealed weapon and for the possession of the weapon. -
National Firearms Act passed
Congress passes the National Firearms Act in response to the violent gangster
culture of the Prohibition era. The law taxes the manufacture, sale, and
transfer of fully automatic firearms, including machine guns and sawed-off
shotguns and requires FBI background checks for the purchasers of these
weapons. -
Gun Control Act 1968
The assassinations of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Sen. Robert Kennedy fuel the passage of the Gun
Control Act. The Act prohibits the direct mail order of firearms and ammunition, regulates imported guns,
expands record-keeping requirements and prevents convicted felons, mentally ill people, illegal drug users
and others from buying guns. -
FOPA and LEOPA
• The Firearms Owners' Protection Act eases some restrictions on gun and ammunition sales and allows people to buy rifles out of state. It also bans the manufacture, sale or ownership of machine guns.
• The Law Enforcement Officers Protection Act makes it illegal to possess "cop killer" bullets capable of
penetrating bulletproof clothing -
Stockton shooting
Following a January shooting spree in which five children were killed in Stockton, California, by
a man with an AK-47, California becomes the first state to ban all assault weapons. -
The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994
• The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994
bans the sale, manufacture, importation and possession of specific
types of assault weapons for civilian use.
• Wal-Mart stops selling handguns in its stores, although
customers can continue to purchase the weapons through the instore catalog.
• According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report, approx -
Columbine Shooting
Teenagers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold kill a teacher and a
dozen students at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. This
tragedy fuels a new campaign on gun control. -
Sandy Hook Shooting
A gunman enters Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut and fatally shoots
26 people. Twenty of the victims are children. The shooting fuels new calls for changes in gun control
legislation. -
