Gun Control and Violence
Re “Boy, 15, Held in Slaying of Mother,” and “Man Mistakenly Shoots Wife, Police Say,” Oct. 17.
There were two articles in today’s Valley section that I am certain the gun-control advocates will just eat up. They will cite both incidents as justification for the abolition of guns. One person was killed and another was wounded by gun violence. Gun-control advocates will claim that these are good reasons to take guns away from everyone.
Another story, about a riot at a soccer game in Guatemala, also caught my attention. Seventy-nine people were killed as a result of fans storming the stadium. If we were to apply the same logic here that gun-control advocates would want to apply to the [gun-violence] situation, then we should outlaw soccer games for everyone.
In the United States, we punish the innocent for the wrongs of the guilty.
When violent crime grows, we impose restrictions on the legitimate purchaser of guns and ammunition. We need to do a better job of enforcing the laws we already have, not create new laws that turn the law-abiding citizen into a criminal merely by legislative fiat.
MICHAEL J. ALLEGRETTI
Northridge
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
