![](\"https:\/\/img.buzzfeed.com\/buzzfeed-static\/static\/2018-03\/5\/21\/asset\/buzzfeed-prod-fastlane-01\/sub-buzz-21528-1520303162-1.jpg?downsize=700%3A%2A&output-quality=auto&output-format=auto\")
<\/p>\nBy: Ryan Leonard<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A majority of Americans report being concerned about gun violence and support stricter gun laws.[1]<\/a>\u00a0 However, part of the quandary facing state and federal policymakers regarding prospective gun regulation is the desire to reduce gun violence without infringing on the Second Amendment of the Constitution which protects \u201c…the right of the people to keep and bear arms.\u201d[2]<\/a> While handguns are involved in more fatalities than rifles or shotguns,[3]<\/a> the right to own a handgun is specifically given Constitutional protection.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n One possible solution for making guns safer but still fully available is the implementation of smart-gun technology.[5]<\/a>\u00a0 One style of smart-gun is a firearm that is embedded with a sensor.[6]<\/a> The sensor then controls whether the firearm is operational.[7]<\/a>\u00a0 The owner or other authorized user may render the firearm operational by bringing a corresponding sensor within range of the firearm (the corresponding sensor may be located in a watch, ring, or other wearable accessory near the hand).[8]<\/a>\u00a0 Another style of smart-gun is fingerprint operated.[9]<\/a>\u00a0 In such a model, only users with authorized fingerprints would be able to operate the gun.[10]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n A primary rationale for putting forth smart-gun technology is the avoidance of gun accidents, as opposed to the prevention of mass shootings.[11]<\/a>\u00a0 If a child, for example, came into possession of a smart-gun it would not be operational, thus greatly reducing the threat of an accidental discharge.[12]<\/a>\u00a0 According to the Harvard Injury Control Research Center, \u201cthe majority of people killed in firearm accidents are under age 24, and most of these young people are being shot by someone else, usually someone their own age.\u201d[13]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n In 1986 Congress passed the Firearm Owners Protection Act which states that in the United States \u201c\u2026it shall be unlawful for any person to transfer or possess a machinegun.\u201d[14]<\/a>\u00a0 The prohibition, however, did not render all machineguns illegal.\u00a0 Rather, an exception is made for machineguns \u201clawfully possessed\u201d before the law goes into effect.[15]<\/a>\u00a0 Effectively, no new machineguns could be produced.[16]<\/a> \u00a0Likewise, Congress could pass legislation requiring that all firearms henceforth produced be equipped with smart-gun technology.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n New Jersey has in fact already become the first state to pass legislation regarding the sale of smart-guns.[17]<\/a>\u00a0 The New Jersey law requires that \u201clicensed firearm retail dealers make available for purchase\u00a0at least one\u00a0personalized handgun within 60 days of the first personalized handgun being included on a state roster of approved personalized handguns.\u201d[18]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Handguns without sensor or biometric technology typically range in price $250-$1000.[19]<\/a>\u00a0 However, at approximately $1,800 each, smart-guns are currently prohibitively expensive.[20]<\/a>\u00a0 It remains to be seen whether a cost-effective smart-gun design could be feasibly produced.\u00a0 If and when such technology is more made more affordable, state legislatures and the United States Congress may find themselves in the position of being asked to craft legislation that will effectively change the nature of modern civilian firearms.<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> See <\/em>Giffords Law Center, https:\/\/lawcenter.giffords.org\/facts\/polling\/ (last visited Dec. 5, 2019).<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> U.S. Const. amend. II.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> See <\/em>Peter Dujardin, \u2018Assault\u2019 Rifles vs. Handguns: Which Are the Bigger Problem?, <\/em>(Mar. 21, 2018, 8:42 AM), https:\/\/www.dailypress.com\/news\/crime\/dp-nws-assault-rifles-handgun-violence-20180312-story.html.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> See <\/em>District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570, 570 (2008).<\/p>\n [5]<\/a> See <\/em>Sam Levin, Smart Guns: Could Fingerprint Technology Solve America\u2019s Shooting Deaths?,<\/em> Guardian (Feb. 24, 2016, 3:13 PM), https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/technology\/2016\/feb\/24\/personalized-smart-guns-biometric-access-fingerprints-gun-control.<\/p>\n [6]<\/a> See <\/em>Nicole Nguyen, Here\u2019s What\u2019s Up With \u201cSmart Guns\u201d and Why You Can\u2019t Buy One in the US,<\/em> BuzzFeed News (Mar. 13, 2018, 5:02 PM), https:\/\/www.buzzfeednews.com\/article\/nicolenguyen\/what-is-smart-gun-technology.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> See<\/em> id.<\/p>\n [8]<\/a> See<\/em> id.<\/p>\n [9]<\/a> See <\/em>Levin, supra <\/em>note 5.<\/p>\n [10]<\/a> See<\/em> Levin, supra <\/em>note 5.<\/p>\n [11]<\/a> See <\/em>Nguyen, supra <\/em>note 6.<\/p>\n [12]<\/a> See<\/em> Giffords Law Center, https:\/\/lawcenter.giffords.org\/gun-laws\/policy-areas\/child-consumer-safety\/smart-guns\/ (last visited Dec. 5, 2019).<\/p>\n [13]<\/a> Harvard Injury Control Research Center, https:\/\/www.hsph.harvard.edu\/hicrc\/firearms-research\/gun-threats-and-self-defense-gun-use\/ (last visited Dec. 5, 2019).<\/p>\n [14]<\/a> 18 U.S.C.A. \u00a7 922 (1986).<\/p>\n [15]<\/a> See<\/em> id.<\/p>\n [16]<\/a> See<\/em> id.<\/p>\n [17]<\/a> See <\/em>Giffords Law Center, https:\/\/lawcenter.giffords.org\/gun-laws\/policy-areas\/child-consumer-safety\/smart-guns\/ (last visited Dec. 5, 2019).<\/p>\n [18]<\/a> Id.<\/p>\n