Opinion: Did Overturning The Handgun Law Lead to More Shootings?

" Editor's Note: Edward McClelland is an opinion writer, and this column explains his opinion on second amendment rights. Please keep the discussion about this opinion piece in the below commenting section, and on social media, clean and respectful. Racially charged or threatening comments will be moderated.

For anyone looking for a reason as to why Chicagoans are shooting each other more often, how about this one: it’s now legal to own a handgun here.

The Supreme Court issued its McDonald v. Chicago decision, which held that local governments do not have the right to write their own gun control laws, in 2010. The decision overturned the city’s handgun ban, and the police department began issuing permits later that year.

Since the beginning of this year, 120 people have been murdered in Chicago. That’s a 60 percent increase over 2010 and 2011. It’s affecting every neighborhood. During one weekend in January, there were three murders within a mile of my apartment in Rogers Park: one young man’s body was found in a park. His killer committed suicide a few hours later. Two others were shot to death as they drove down Sheridan Road. Their SUV crashed into a pole and knocked it down. "

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