Not every gun buyer should wait for 10 days
Re “Gun rights groups sue over state’s 10-day wait for buyers” (May 3): An important issue was missing from this article. People with a concealed carry permit and people who legally own a firearm should not be subjected to the waiting period.
They have already been vetted and possess a firearm. As written, the law applies to all firearm purchases. This is a clear infringement on Second Amendment rights.
The law’s intent was to create a cooling off waiting period that may prevent gun violence, including suicide, and give law enforcement enough time to determine if the prospective gun buyer is prohibited from purchasing a gun.
The law should be rewritten to apply only to first-time gun buyers and be of sufficient time to allow for the background check.
Mike Wagner
Ramona
10-day waiting period does seem reasonable
Re “Gun rights groups sue over state’s 10-day wait for buyers” (May 3): The gun lobby is trying to get the courts to end the 10-day waiting period to purchase a gun in California. The gun lobby feels anyone should be able to walk into a gun shop and take a gun home the same day because the state database can confirm a person is eligible to buy a gun within minutes.
If someone cannot wait 10 days to get a gun, they may be very likely planning to commit suicide immediately or kill another person. The 10-day waiting period serves as a cooling off period.
Linda Duryea
Coronado
Lawmakers need to back away from NRA
Re “Police arrest suspect in Atlanta shooting; 1 dead, 4 wounded” (May 4): After yet another senseless shooting, many of those who are in positions to make a difference with policy or legislation talk about mental illness as a contributor to gun violence in America, but they fail to acknowledge the most significant mental illness in that regard is the valuing of guns and the National Rifle Association over the lives of children and fellow citizens.
These same people wear AR-15 lapel pins, send out Christmas cards featuring their family members posing with guns or boast about their 2-year-old grandchild having a shotgun and a rifle.
This is the real mental illness plaguing our country, and its result is a continuing and regular loss of life due to gun violence. We can’t become numb to this. We must continue to demand change.
Joanna Jaeger
Poway
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