The shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, shocked the nation after it claimed the lives of nineteen children, aged nine through eleven, and two teachers. On May 24, 2022, these children and teachers left for school in the morning and never returned home. Children who fell victim to the massacre included Jacklyn Cazares, who wanted to be a veterinarian and one day visit Paris; Jose Flores Jr., who hoped to protect others as a police officer; Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, remembered as a thoughtful boy who made his grandparents coffee every morning before school; and Maite Yuleana Rodriguez, an animal lover who dreamt of becoming a marine biologist.
Unfortunately, tragedies like the Uvalde shooting occur frequently in the United States. These shootings affect some of the most vulnerable populations, namely, defenseless children. For example, the Columbine shooting in 1999 claimed the lives of twelve students and one teacher. And in 2012, the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting killed twenty students and six school administrators. While public outcry ensues and politicians offer their condolences after each shooting, the United States repeatedly fails to adopt major gun reform to prevent these incidents. In fact, these shootings, which occur not only in schools but also in malls, places of worship, nightclubs, and grocery stores, happen so frequently that desensitized Americans expect such senseless acts of violence as everyday occurrences.
The prevalence of firearms in the United States stems from the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. The Second Amendment reads, “[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.” While interpretations of the Second Amendment's text evolved over time, the holding in District of Columbia v. Heller has prevailed: the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess firearms and need not concern a well-regulated militia. Although some federal laws regulate the sale, transfer, and use of guns, none have successfully reduced gun violence.
Gun violence in the United States has reached shocking levels. While its impacts are felt by all Americans, this Comment focuses on its effect on American children. Recently, firearms became the leading cause of death for children in the United States, with 1,685 children losing their lives to gun violence in 2022. This Comment analyzes how American firearm regulation and Second Amendment case law perpetuate violence in schools. In particular, this Comment examines the ways in which the new landmark case, New York State Pistol & Rifle Ass'n v. Bruen, makes it more difficult to pass stricter gun laws. Bruen invalidated a New York concealed carry law and developed a new framework to analyze Second Amendment claims, which makes it more difficult to pass legislation regulating firearms. Part II of this Comment analyzes the Second Amendment and current U.S. firearm legislation. Part III examines Bruen, and how court decisions like Bruenperpetuate a pattern of gun violence throughout the country. By comparing three school shootings in the United States to three international school shootings in Part IV, this Comment argues that the United States government fails to appropriately respond to mass shootings when compared with other foreign governments' swift actions in passing tighter laws following similar shootings. Next, Part V comparatively analyzes U.S. gun laws to those of other countries with significantly lower rates of gun violence. Finally, Part VI proposes solutions to reduce gun violence and create a safer nation where children no longer must fear going to school.
About the Author
Hannah M. Zundel-Davis, J.D. Candidate 2024, Tulane University Law School; B.A. 2020, University of California San Diego. Thank you to my advisor, Catherine Hancock, for her guidance in writing about this topic, and to my colleagues on the Tulane Law Review for their help in publication. I would like to thank my mom for her endless support and love, and years of editing my academic papers, as well as my dad for his advice and critiques on my writing. Lastly, I am so grateful for my friends in New Orleans, who have made my time at Tulane and on the Review so memorable.
Citation
98 Tul. L. Rev. 329