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EAST LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) - As President Obama called on Congress to pass stricter gun control laws, many Michigan State professors are sounding off.
"We need to be tougher on those who buy guns with the express purpose of turning around and selling them to criminals and we should severely punish those who help them do this," said President Obama on Wednesday.
Jesenia Pizarro, a professor in MSU's School of Criminal Justice, says that quote stood out most, and believes the president's plans are a step in the right direction. She agrees they'll not only help prevent mass shootings, but also the gun violence that happens across daily.
"These types of initiatives that he's introducing will help us deal with the problems in our own backyard," said Pizarro.
Pizarro says often, criminals slip through the cracks because someone helps them.
"The way they get there is someone buys them legally and then they sell them," she says.
April Zeoli, also a professor in the School of Criminal Justice at MSU, has done extensive research in domestic violence homicide. She spoke with 6 News after giving her gun control recommendations at a gun summit in Maryland. Zeoli likes the idea of universal background checks for all gun buyers, including those who are looking for a private sale.
"If we can get everyone who purchases a firearm, to be screened for prohibiting offenses, for disqualifications, then we would be able to keep firearms out of people who are dangerous," said Zeoli.
Both professors say there are questions surrounding gun violence that don't have the answers to and the only way better understand it is to support research dollars for experts to study it.
