Karen Walsh: The law of the gun is applied strictly here
In Ireland, the law states that one must have a valid licence to hold or possess any firearm.
In order to possess a limited range of hunting and sport-shooting firearms, gun owners must renew their firearm certificates every three years.
There is a common misconception amongst the general public that anyone can obtain a licence for a firearm.
This is simply not the case.
It is not possible to obtain a firearm licence unless you can demonstrate that you have complete justification, with good reason, such as hunting or target shooting, to have a gun.
A superintendent will not issue a gun licence for personal protection purposes.
An applicant must provide proof of identification and age, proof of competence with the firearm concerned, and proof of secure storage for weapons and ammunition while not in use.
Potential gun owners must, when making an application for a firearm certificate, give written permission for An Garda SÃochána to consult a doctor, psychiatrist or psychologist to confirm the applicant’s good physical and mental health, and must nominate two additional referees to attest to the applicant’s character.
Firearm certificates will not be issued to an applicant who is known to be of ‘intemperate habits’ or of ‘unsound mind’; or has been convicted of a crime and sentenced to imprisonment for certain firearm-related or terrorist offences; or is bound to keep the peace or to be of good behaviour.
The minimum age to obtain a full firearm certificate is 16 years.
With written consent from a parent or guardian, applicants aged 14-15 years may be issued with a firearm training certificate for hunting or target shooting only while under the supervision of a licensed adult.
It is illegal for any civilian to use, carry or possess a firearm or ammunition without a valid firearm certificate which correctly specifies the owner, the weapon, the ammunition and its maximum permitted quantity.
Although small arms- related deaths, injuries and crime rates remain relatively low here, rising rates of gun violence and firearm ownership in the Republic — in particular, possession and misuse of handguns — have become sources of national concern.
There are over 200,000 legally held firearms in Ireland, most of which are shotguns and hunting rifles.
It has been estimated that as many as 150,000 unregistered firearms might also be in private possession in Ireland.
The issue of gun law often comes up when discussing rural crime in Ireland.
It has never been more relevant than now. There is a sense of vulnerability in rural parts of Ireland.
According to the Central Statistics Office, since 2010, more than 28,642 farm- related crime incidents were reported to GardaÃ, including more than 2,000 thefts every year.
The law in relation to defending your dwelling and self defence came under review for reform over the past number of years, especially with the introduction of The Criminal Law (Defence and the Dwelling) Act 2011. This act deals with many issues, the one concerning us in this case is the use of reasonable force against an intruder who has the intention of committing a crime, including such force that is reasonable in the circumstances causing death.
Gun law in Ireland contrasts starkly to American gun law.
Some US states adopt a licence-based system with background checks, but quite often, people can walk in off the street and purchase a gun.
This has led to worrying statistics in relation to crime in America.
Most guns held legally in Ireland are held for justifiable reasons.
A judge will not look favourably on an incident if it is found a firearm was illegally held.
Without doubt, rural crime is an escalating problem here, and as we face into the winter months, it is something that is on many people’s minds.
Canada is often held up as an example of the good that restrictive gun control law can do.
Although Canada is ranked 12th in the world for the number of civilian-owned guns per capita, it reports one of the world’s lower homicide rates.
In my opinion, the answer in tackling rural crime lies in addressing the cause of the problem rather than the effects.
