Shannon's law refers to specific changes in

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

statutes A statute is a law or formal written enactment of a legislature. Statutes typically declare, command or prohibit something. Statutes are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (also known as common law) in that they are the expressed wil ...

, enacted in 2000, making it a

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...

offense to discharge

firearms A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions). The first firearms originated ...

randomly into the air.

History

''Shannon's law'' is named after Shannon Smith, a fourteen-year-old Phoenix girl killed by a stray bullet in June 1999. Smith's parents, after being informed that the assailant's activity constituted, at most, a

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

offense, advocated stronger penalties, to prevent future incidents of this kind. Otis and Lory Smith joined the board of directors for Arizonans for Gun Safety. They started a campaign that took them all over Arizona. Their efforts were supported by councilman Phil Gordon, the city council of

Tucson Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, and president of the

National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...

Charlton Heston Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923 – April 5, 2008) was an American actor. He gained stardom for his leading man roles in numerous Cinema of the United States, Hollywood films including biblical epics, science-fiction f ...

. After a speech by Governor

Jane Dee Hull Jane Dee Hull (; August 8, 1935 – April 16, 2020) was an American politician and educator who was the 20th governor of Arizona from 1997 to 2003. She ascended to the office following the resignation of Fife Symington; Hull was elected in ...

voicing her support, senate minority leader Jack A. Brown named passing the law a priority. The

Arizona legislature The Arizona State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arizona. It is a bicameral legislature that consists of a lower house, the House of Representatives, and an upper house, the Senate. Composed of 90 legislators, the s ...

failed to pass the bill twice in 1999, but it finally received both

state senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...

and

state house State House or statehouse may refer to: Buildings *Aso Villa or State House, the official residence of the President of Nigeria *Government House, Dominica or The State House, the official residence of the President of Dominica * State House, Bar ...

approval in April 2000. The bill was enacted that July, with Governor Hull signing the bill in the Smiths’ front yard.

Enforcement

Violation of ''Shannon's law'' is defined as a class 6 felony offense in Arizona. However, as with most felony offenses in United States

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...

s, a person charged with this offense can strike a

plea bargain A plea bargain, also known as a plea agreement or plea deal, is a legal arrangement in criminal law where the defendant agrees to plead guilty or no contest to a charge in exchange for concessions from the prosecutor. These concessions can include a ...

with

prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...

s, and may be eligible for only a misdemeanor

conviction In law, a conviction is the determination by a court of law that a defendant is Guilty (law), guilty of a crime. A conviction may follow a guilty plea that is accepted by the court, a jury trial in which a verdict of guilty is delivered, or a ...

. The decision of whether such an offer is available lies solely in the hands of the prosecutor, and presently these offenses are being charged as "dangerous" offenses, thereby making the accused ineligible for probation under state law, requiring a prison sentence even for a first offense. On December 31, 2003, police in the city of Glendale began using equipment which alerted them to the location from which a shot was fired. As random discharge of firearms are common in some areas of the United States on

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

Fourth of July Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...

, and other

holiday A holiday is a day or other period of time set aside for festivals or recreation. ''Public holidays'' are set by public authorities and vary by state or region. Religious holidays are set by religious organisations for their members and are often ...

s, four arrests of ''Shannon's law'' violators were made that night, and it is expected that more Arizona

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

departments will receive similar equipment.

Shannon Smith Memorial

Shannon Smith had been an award-winning athlete and honor student, and had graduated from the eighth grade a few weeks prior to her death. While she stood in her backyard talking on the telephone with a friend, a stray bullet hit her in her head, causing instant death. Smith's death sparked a furor among Arizona residents. Her funeral was attended by approximately 1,300 people. A sunflower monument, made with melted metal from confiscated firearms, was raised in her honor at Madison Meadows Middle School by her classmates and friends. Nearly $20,000 in donations for the monument were primarily raised by Shannon's friends and classmates holding car washes.Alt URL
/ref> The shooter was never found.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Arizona Statutes for unlawful discharge of firearms
Arizona statutes United States firearms law 2000 in American law 2000 in Arizona

History

Enforcement

Shannon Smith Memorial

See also

References

External links