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Show Rebuttal to Arguments Against Arguments against Propost! ion The proposed Utah constitutional amendment as to firearms should not be approved by the voters. The present constitutional provision is quite It recognizes a right to bear arms and, at the same time, empowers the legislature to regulate the subject. Nothing could be more evident than that organized society should be competent to protect the public safety against the unregulated availability of deadly weapons. .Vo. 5 Currently, Article I, Section 6 of the Utah Constitution not only grants a right, but allows the legislature to restrict the right. This leaves the provision open to a great deal of interpretation. Subsequently, in one recent Utah Supreme Court case dealing with this issue, the five justices wrote three different opinions as to what rights the citizens of Utah have and the extent those rights can be regulated. One of those opinions state that regulation to the point of complet e prohibition is a proper exercise of legislative authority under Utahs current constitutional provision! As the Supreme Court of the United States has made quite clear, the provisions of the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States concerning a right to bear arms relate to the availability of arms for citizen militia. Therefore, Proposition 5 seeks to change the last clause of the current language from a grant of legislative authority to regulate the right to a recognition of the legislative power to define the lawful use of arms. It's a change that will not compromise the ability of the legislature to draft laws necessary to protect the populace from firearms misuse. It would be no less than foolhardy to deny the representatives of the people adequate authority to protect the citizenry generally against the misuse of deadly weapons. Certainly it should be clear that all of us in organized society have vital dependence upon our elected representatives to adopt reasonable measures to assure the public safety. The amendment also acknowledges the right belongs to the individuals in society rather than the people as a whole and adds the right of keeping arms to the already recognized right to bear arms. In addition, Proposition 5 clarifies the reasons for keeping and bearing arms to include not only security and defense, but other lawful purposes such as hunting and target shooting. Vote AGAJNST Proposition 5 as an unnecessary and unwise change in the Utah constitution! Mr. Jefferson B. Fordham Distinguished Professor of Law College of Law University of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah 84112 Proposition 5 is needed to provide this and future generations of Utah citizens with a strong, positive guarantee of their individual right to keep and bear arms. VOTE FOR Proposition 5! Senator Jack M. Bangerter 1177 East 500 North Bountiful, Utah 84010 Representative Donna M. Dahl 2440 East 6200 South Salt Lake City, Utah 84121 29- |