April 10, 2023 – This year, the United States has witnessed a higher number of mass shootings and fatalities than in the past decade, with more than 200 people losing their lives to such incidents. This trend continued after a tragic shooting at a bank in Louisville, Kentucky, on Monday morning.
According to law enforcement, a shooting occurred inside the Old National Bank building in downtown Louisville, resulting in the death of four individuals while eight others were injured. The suspected shooter has also died, as confirmed by the police.
As per the findings of the Swiss research project, Small Arms Survey (SAS), the number of civilian-owned guns in the United States exceeds the country’s population, making it the only nation in the world with such statistics. The report indicates that there are approximately 120 guns for every 100 Americans.
Following every mass shooting, the topic of gun control re-emerges in both politics and the media in the United States. In June of last year, President Biden enacted bipartisan gun reform legislation in response to the Uvalde massacre that claimed the lives of 19 children and two adults in May.
However, some analysts are uncertain about the law’s immediate impact on gun violence, at least in the present year.
After the Nashville shooting incident, President Biden urged Congress to pass an assault weapons ban, which previously faced significant opposition in the Republican-controlled House. A similar ban had previously failed to pass the divided Senate in November. When asked about the likelihood of the House introducing new legislation in response to the Nashville shooting, the Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), stated that the focus should be on addressing mental illness and argued that a single law would not solve the issue.
While being vigilant for warning signs may seem like a personal effort, experts feel policy decisions will ultimately play a momentous role in shaping the direction of gun violence and mass shootings in the US.