Should crimes committed with guns be punished more severely?

[lionking]

Originally Posted by jrzymuscle25

Should people who speed in a Suburban be punished more harshly than someone in a Civic because it will cause more damage or injury?? stupid question

Imagine a rapist who gets 8 years instead of 15 years because he used a knife not a gun.

[AONE]

Here in Fl it is already far more serious if you bring a gun to the party. expect 25 to life

[kaimuki]

This is a STUPID poll. The moonbats are nuts!!!!

[rbohm]

Originally Posted by Finn_Jarber

No, and Florida law proves why. Some people are serving 15 year mandatory sentences only because a gun was involved in what they did, and in many cases no one was hurt. In the other hand such laws might make people think twice before flashing their guns. A warning shot in the air or in the ground can land you in prison for 15 years.

Originally Posted by 1AngryTaxPayer

No

I fail to see how clubbing someone into a coma with a gun is different than clubbing someone with your fist into a coma. Or killing them.

Did you mean gun vs other lethal weapon?

Originally Posted by Ciaerin

In my opinion wrong. A crime is a crime no matter what TOOL was used.

Originally Posted by Finn_Jarber

The problem here in FL is the 'minimum sentencing guidelines' where any involvement of a firearm gets you in big trouble, and the judge has no leeway to look at the circumstances. Did you hear about the elderly man who got 15 years for firinga warning shot. Or the woman who got 15 for the same? NRA did indeed ask for tough sentencing when a firearm was involved in a crime, but that coupled with the minimum sentencing guidelines is a disaster.

Originally Posted by Scotty011

No! Crimes committed with any type of deadly weapon should be treated the same. Why treat a gun any different than anything else that can kill a person. Crimes with deadly weapons should have harsher penalties.

what you guys are forgetting is this, when you bring a deadly weapon other than a firearm to commit a crime, it wont "accidentally" go off and kill someone, they require malice of forethought. on the other hand if you bring a firearm to a robbery, with all the attendant adrenalin running through everyones veins, the possibility of an accidental discharge goes way up, and chances are someone is going to get hurt. bring a knife to a robbery and you dont have to stab someone unless you want to, bring a gun and you might accidentally pull the trigger. think about that before you decide if a firearms crime should be punished more severely or not.

how many times have you heard someone convicted of a gun related crime where there was a serious injury or death say, "i didnt mean to shoot them"?