November 2017 Public Forum Advanced Research Guide

Resolved: The United States should require universal background checks for all gun sales and transfer of ownership.

Presented by the Institute for Speech and Debate

Compiled by: Carol Green, The Harker School, CA and Chase Williams, Hawken School, OH

Pro Articles: "A New State Ice Age for Gun Policy - Harvard Law and ..." Harvard Law. 2016. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://harvardlpr.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/10.2_3_Rostron.pdf. This article focuses on state gun control policies during the Obama administration and trends at the state level. "KEVLAR FOR THE INNOCENT: WHY MODELING GUN REGULATION AFTER GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRALIA, AND SWITZERLAND WILL REDUCE THE RATE OF MASS SHOOTINGS IN AMERICA." California Western International Law Journal. 2014. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://scholarlycommons.law.cwsl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1457&context=cwilj. This article highlights international gun policies and how they could be applied successfully in the United States. Cook, Philip J., Richard J. Harris, Jens Ludwig, and Harold A. Pollack. 2015. SOME SOURCES OF CRIME GUNS IN CHICAGO: DIRTY DEALERS, STRAW PURCHASERS, AND TRAFFICKERS. Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology 104, (4) (Fall): 717-759, Accessed October 16, 2017. This journal article examines how criminals acquire guns. It focuses on gang member firearm acquisition in Chicago. Daniels, Ann. "The Online Gun Marketplace and The Dangerous Loophole In ..." 2014. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://repository.jmls.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1749&context=jitpl. This article highlights the current flaws in federal background check policies - specifically as it relates to online gun sales.

Darmstadter, Howard. "Are Gun Control Laws Constitutional?" Washington Monthly, July 7, 2016. Accessed October 16, 2017. https://washingtonmonthly.com/2016/07/07/are-gun-control-laws-constitutional/. This article addresses the incorporation of 2nd Amendment rights through the Due Process clause and the impacts this may have on gun control legislation. This is an important component of the debate to understand as it could be used to justify the constitutionality of state and federal legislation. Degrazia, David. "The Case for Moderate Gun Control." Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 24, no. 1 (2014): 1-25. doi:10.1353/ken.2014.0003. This article highlights UBCs as a part of a “moderate gun control” strategy in a society where the right to bear arms is assumed. Gorman, Sean. "Haas says fewer women killed by guns in states with expanded background checks." PolitiFact Virginia. Last modified February 16, 2015. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://www.politifact.com/virginia/statements/2015/feb/16/lori-haas/haas-says-fewer-women-killed-guns-states-expanded-/. This article fact-checks a claim that fewer women are killed by guns in states with more comprehensive background checks. While the initial claim was overstated, the article does conclude there is truth behind the claim. Parsons, Arkadi Gerney and Chelsea. "The Gun Debate 1 Year After Newtown." Center for American Progress. December 13, 2013. Accessed October 16, 2017. https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/guns-crime/reports/2013/12/13/80795/the-gun-debate-1-year-after-newtown/. This article addresses some of the primary claims made about background checks in the public debate. Rudolph, Kara E., Elizabeth A. Stuart, Jon S. Vernick, and Daniel W. Webster. "Association Between Connecticut’s Permit-to-Purchase Handgun Law and Homicides." American Journal of Public Health 105, no. 8 (2015). doi:10.2105/ajph.2015.302703. This article examines the impact of Connecticut’s handgun license law on homicides. Webster, Daniel W., and Vernick, Jon S., eds. 2013. Reducing Gun Violence in America : Informing Policy with Evidence and Analysis. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. Accessed October 13, 2017. ProQuest Ebook Central. This book is a collection of articles from experts on gun policy and violence from the United States and selected other countries who summarize relevant research and make policy recommendations. This book includes empirical research, legal analysis, and includes case

studies from Australia, Scotland, and Brazil. It addresses how to strengthen gun laws including multiple articles on background checks, while taking into account Second Amendment issues. Webster, Daniel W., and Vernick, Jon S., eds. 2014. Updated Evidence and Policy Developments on Reducing Gun Violence in America. Johns Hopkins University Press. Accessed October 16, 2017. https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/images/gun_violence/Program%20materials%203.pdf This book is an updated look from Webster at Gun Violence research. Wintemute, Garen. Background Checks for Firearm Transfers: Assessment and Recommendations. Government Printing Office, n.d. Accessed October 14, 2017. https://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/vprp/CBC%20White%20Paper%20Final%20Report%20022013.pdf. This report from the Violence Prevention Research Program in the Department of Emergency Medicine at UC Davis School of Medicine outlines policy recommendations for a comprehensive background check program. Con Articles “Restoring the Right to Keep and." CATO Institute. 2017. Accessed October 16, 2017. https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/serials/files/cato-handbook-policymakers/2017/2/cato-handbook-for-policymakers-8th-edition-22_0.pdf. While this article should certainly be read with skepticism given CATO’s very clear bias on this issue (a problem debaters will encounter on both sides of this topic!), it is important to understand the information being given to lawmakers concerning UBC’s. This comes from CATO’s “Handbook for Policy Makers”. "“What Should America Do About Gun Violence?”." Interview by U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. United States Senate Judiciary Committee Full Committee Hearing. January 30, 2013. Accessed October 16, 2017. https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/1-30-13KopelTestimony.pdf. This testimony from David B. Kopel gives important context to the arguments against UBCs. Jacobs, James B., and Zoe A. Fuhr. "Universal Background Checking - New Yorks SAFE Act." Albany Law Review. 2015/2016. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://www.albanylawreview.org/Articles/vol79_4/1327%20Jacobs%20PRODUCTION.pdf. This article highlights the limitations of New York’s UBC requirement.

Kurtzleben, Danielle. "Research Suggests Gun Background Checks Work, But They're Not Everything." NPR. January 09, 2016. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://www.npr.org/2016/01/09/462252799/research-suggests-gun-background-checks-work-but-theyre-not-everything. This article highlights some of the limitations of background checks - and important part of any con strategy. Lang, Matthew. "State Firearm Sales and Criminal Activity: Evidence from Firearm Background Checks." Southern Economic Journal 83, no. 1 (2016): 45-68. doi:10.1002/soej.12134. This article concludes that the relationship between background checks and violent crime is insignificant. There is a significant relationship found at the 10% level for property crime. Lott, John R., Do Background Checks on Private Gun Transfers Help Stop Mass Public Shootings? (January 2, 2016). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2711323 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2711323 This study examines 47 mass shootings from 2000 to 2015 and finds that making background checks mandatory on the transfer of firearms would not have prevented any of the mass shootings. There is also no evidence to suggest states with stricter background checks have fewer mass shootings. Michel, C. D. "Why universal background checks won't work." The Hill (blog). Entry posted April 17, 2013. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/judicial/294213-why-universal-background-checks-wont-work. This article advocates against passing problematic legislation and argues that background checks are useless without a national gun registry. Schell, Terry, and Andrew Morral. "Evaluating Methods and Findings from a Study of State Gun Policies." RAND Corporation, 2016. doi:10.7249/rr1642. This article indicts an analysis of state gun policies that claimed 98% solvency for some laws. While the article in question may not be read by affirmative teams, the arguments that RAND makes could be helpful in understanding how to indict other research on this topic. Tuccille, J. D. "Washington's Universal Gun Background Checks Kick In, Not That They Can Be Enforced." Hit & Run (blog). Entry posted December 1, 2014. Accessed October 16, 2017. http://reason.com/blog/2014/12/01/washingtons-universal-gun-background-che.

This blog post addresses the question of enforcement for Washington state's recently passed legislation which mandates background checks for all sales and transfers of firearms. It argues the legislation does not have the ability to enforce its objective. Articles for Both Sides: Chu, Vivian S. Congressional Authority to Regulate Firearms: A Legal Overview. April 5, 2013. Accessed October 16, 2017. https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R43033.pdf. This Congressional Research Services report examines the constitutional constraints in which Congress is able to regulate guns. There is an entire section examining background checks. Hemenway, David. Private Guns, Public Health. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2007. Accessed October 16, 2017. ProQuest Ebook Central. Note that this book may be used for a number of arguments, including some Pro arguments, as it contains a lengthy investigation of guns and health in our country. However, while it does concede background checks are a step in the right direction, it also includes in the Afterword how barebones the background checks are in the country and that a terrorist could easily obtain guns in the United States, passing our current background check system. McGinty, Emma E., Julia A. Wolfson, Tara Kirk Sell, and Daniel W. Webster. 2016. "Common Sense or Gun Control? Political Communication and News Media Framing of Firearm Sale Background Checks after Newtown." Journal Of Health Politics, Policy & Law 41, no. 1: 3-40. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed October 13, 2017). More advanced debaters may find this article useful as it examines the way both sides of the legislative debate frame their arguments for media/public consumption. While this article may not necessarily be used within an argument, it’s findings may be useful for framing the rhetorical messages and word choice during case writing.