Why Can't Felons Have Guns?

[king.solomon]

Follow me for a minute here.... If you commit a crime, and go to prison and serve your sentence, isn't that called "paying your debt to society"? You have been punished, and now you are a felon.

Fine.

But WHY is your right to bear arms taken away? Felons are the one who most likely live in high-crime, drug infested areas. The exact type of place where you NEED a gun! Remember, the felon has already paid for his crime.

Why disarm a member of society who needs a gun for self-defense the most?

Your Thoughts..

 

[Warrior102]

How would you feel about a couple of convicted child molesters who have "paid their debt to society" for 20 years apiece moving into your trailer with you, asswipe?

 

[TakeAStepBack]

How would you feel about a couple of convicted child molesters who have "paid their debt to society" for 20 years apiece moving into your trailer with you, asswipe?

Um, I believe he was talking about keeping an inalienable right, not moving a child molester into someone's home.

Frankly, I can see it both ways. if we didn't have victimless crimes that can make one a felon, I'd agree with the current law. A violent offender has revoked their ability to own arms. But there are a lot of non-violent offenders who make the felons list. In which case, it's deplorable to remove their rights simply because the system is completely lop-sided.

 

[AmyNation]

Who says they can't? Many states allow felons to regain the right to own a firearm.

 

[king.solomon]

Warrior's mind is somehow gravitating toward sex crimes!

WTF?!!

LOL

 

[Katzndogz]

You don't understand the concept of paying your debt to society. Completing a prison sentence does not make the crime go away. It means that you have completed the maximum sentence that can be imposed for that crime.

If we did not have such a high recidivism rate, completing a prison sentence would bring much more forgiveness and forgetfulness.

 

[25Caliber]

Follow me for a minute here.... If you commit a crime, and go to prison and serve your sentence, isn't that called "paying your debt to society"? You have been punished, and now you are a felon.

Fine.

But WHY is your right to bear arms taken away? Felons are the one who most likely live in high-crime, drug infested areas. The exact type of place where you NEED a gun! Remember, the felon has already paid for his crime.

Why disarm a member of society who needs a gun for self-defense the most?

Your Thoughts..

I lean to agreeing with you...as long as you have paid your debt to society. Like a felon who has paid his debt can no longer hunt deer? For the rest of his life?....I dont agree with that.

 

[Mad Scientist]

Follow me for a minute here.... If you commit a crime, and go to prison and serve your sentence, isn't that called "paying your debt to society"? You have been punished, and now you are a felon.

Fine.

But WHY is your right to bear arms taken away? Felons are the one who most likely live in high-crime, drug infested areas. The exact type of place where you NEED a gun! Remember, the felon has already paid for his crime.

Why disarm a member of society who needs a gun for self-defense the most?

Your Thoughts..

Because America is the Land of the Free.

 

[hoosier88]

Follow me for a minute here.... If you commit a crime, and go to prison and serve your sentence, isn't that called "paying your debt to society"? You have been punished, and now you are a felon.

Fine.

But WHY is your right to bear arms taken away? Felons are the one who most likely live in high-crime, drug infested areas. The exact type of place where you NEED a gun! Remember, the felon has already paid for his crime.

Why disarm a member of society who needs a gun for self-defense the most?

Your Thoughts..

(My bold)

The felon is punished in a number of ways - no guns, no vote, & barred from certain professions - law enforcement, the courts generally, & possibly some political offices. This all varies from state to state - if someone's interested, you need to look up your state & see if there is procedure to reinstate the franchise. I assume that would also cover gun ownership, but you should look into it before trying to purchase a firearm.

There are states that don't allow the recovery of civic rights - the logic seems to be that "once a felon, always a felon". Those states are clearly not concerned about the felon's ability to defend him- or herself, legitimately or any other way.

It's a hard life.

 

[king.solomon]

Ok, I can understand if their crime was involving a gun. But let's say...ummmm.... stealing a car.. grand larceny, or drug possession. Now, we as society, take away a constitutional right from them? What other constitutional rights should we take away from other people who paid for their crimes?

Should Martha Stewart be forced to wear a jacket that says "CROOK" the rest of her life in public?

 

[rightwinger]

Follow me for a minute here.... If you commit a crime, and go to prison and serve your sentence, isn't that called "paying your debt to society"? You have been punished, and now you are a felon.

Fine.

But WHY is your right to bear arms taken away? Felons are the one who most likely live in high-crime, drug infested areas. The exact type of place where you NEED a gun! Remember, the felon has already paid for his crime.

Why disarm a member of society who needs a gun for self-defense the most?

Your Thoughts..

It is part of your punishment

Don't like it....Don't do the crime

 

[westwall]

Follow me for a minute here.... If you commit a crime, and go to prison and serve your sentence, isn't that called "paying your debt to society"? You have been punished, and now you are a felon.

Fine.

But WHY is your right to bear arms taken away? Felons are the one who most likely live in high-crime, drug infested areas. The exact type of place where you NEED a gun! Remember, the felon has already paid for his crime.

Why disarm a member of society who needs a gun for self-defense the most?

Your Thoughts..

A felon has shown by his or her actions that they don't care about the civil rights of others, so they deserve none. They have lost those rights. They can get them back but it is very hard....as it should be.

 

[Mad Scientist]

So Felons are just Condemned to a Life of Crime then?

Thanks America, how forgiving and "Christiany" of you all.

 

[westwall]

So Felons are just Condemned to a Life of Crime then?

Thanks America, how forgiving and "Christiany" of you all.

They MADE the choice to deny someone else of their civil rights. In some cases they have murdered people and have been released back out into the world. You really think they should have the right to a firearm?

Really?

And as I stated earlier, they can obtain a "Relief of Disability" where they can regain the right to own firearms.

Quit whining and educate yourself.

 

[king.solomon]

What I'm saying is that it appears we are setting them up for failure. I mean, if we're so concerned about the people they victimized, why then are we going to put them in a position to be a victim as well?

 

[hoosier88]

So Felons are just Condemned to a Life of Crime then?

Thanks America, how forgiving and "Christiany" of you all.

(My bold)

Psst! A word - the blessings of Christianity in the US tradition are mostly reserved for other Christians. As the Europeans found their way to the New World, the Native Peoples were certainly accorded no rights of any sort - other than the right to lay down their lives, wives, lands, crops, agricultural practices & anything else of value in favor of the intruders - @ gunpoint, if they didn't appreciate the logic inherently. (Disease helped too, of course.)

Similarly, the French, Dutch, Russians, Spanish/Mexicans were all similarly exhorted to give up their material goods &/or lives for the benefit of the new kids in town.

So felons are not exactly condemned to a life of crime. They're left their lives, & in some jurisdictions, can petition to have their civic rights reinstated. That's as good as it gets, & they can be grateful that we're past the bad old days of simply hanging anyone who gets uppity.

 

[westwall]

What I'm saying is that it appears we are setting them up for failure. I mean, if we're so concerned about the people they victimized, why then are we going to put them in a position to be a victim as well?

They can choose to change who they hang with and where they live. I know of one convicted felon who became an A&P. He now makes 100K per year and has a good life.

He CHOSE to do something different.

 

[king.solomon]

[MENTION=42780]hoosier88[/MENTION], I understand you believe that gratitude should follow the atrocities visited upon others through force off might, yet I ponder if this is wise.

For what profit is it to gain the whole world, yet lose one's soul?

 

[rightwinger]

Felons cannot have guns because they have proven themselves too irresponsible to own a firearm and they give legal gunowners a bad name

 

[hoosier88]

[MENTION=42780]hoosier88[/MENTION], I understand you believe that gratitude should follow the atrocities visited upon others through force off might, yet I ponder if this is wise.

For what profit is it to gain the whole world, yet lose one's soul?

(My bold)

king.solomon - Sorry, I was being as facetious as I could manage in #16, above. I think our prison system should @ least attempt to rehab & retrain felons - for some kind of normal life once they return to the World. If not, it's v. difficult for former inmates to integrate into normal civilian life. & if former prisoners can't make any headway in the normal World, they're apt to return to the behavior that landed them in prison in the first place.

Which is not helpful for them, for us, for the criminal justice system. It makes more sense to do everything reasonable we can to help former prisoners transition to a more normal civic life.