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NEW ORLEANS— What does President Biden’s plan for violent crime mean for law-abiding gun owners in the Sportsman’s Paradise? In New Orleans we can’t ignore the fact that violent crime is up.

WGNO talked to a man who fights violence in his neighborhood and a gun shop owner about what all this could mean for them.

“First of all we need everyone to understand the severity, but most importantly the responsibility of owning a weapon,” Anthony Jackson Jr., President of the Police Community Advisory Board said.

Jackson says what it all boils down to is getting the guns out of the hands of those committing violent crimes.

“It is a constitutional right for Americans to bear arms, but we have to be properly educated and trained on when to use a gun and why we have guns,” Jackson said.

He says with the spike in crime involving guns, most of the guns aren’t being purchased legally.

“Some of the people attend gun shows where they don’t require background checks. What happens is someone with wrong intentions goes to a gun show, buys the guns and takes them back into their communities. Then we don’t have anyone to pinpoint when we have homicides,” he said.

According to the Metropolitan Crime Commission, violent crimes are on the rise in New Orleans since 2019. Homicides are up 76 percent and shootings are up 104 percent.

“This is not Afghanistan. This is not the wild, wild west,” Jackson said.

Over at the St. Bernard Indoor Shooting Center, Owner Brannon Lebouef says the problems isn’t with the guns, but the people.

“Criminals will get them through theft or black market sales. There’s no way to push a button and make every firearm on the planet vaporize,” he said.

Lebouef believes stricter gun laws are counter-productive.

“Whenever the government moves to any type of gun control, usually gun sales spike,” he said.

He went on to say, “The answer is not a pretty one. The answer is not a solution. As long as there are humans there will be bad humans. There will always be people who want to hurt other people. Probably the biggest thing we can do is address the mental health issue.”