Deadly toll

Apr 1999: Columbine High, Denver - 15 dead Jul 1999: Atlanta - 13 dead Sep 1999: Wedgewood Baptist Church, Fort Worth - 8 dead Dec 1999: Radisson Bay Harbor Inn, Tampa - 5 dead Dec 2000: Wakefield Massachusetts - 7 shot Mar 2001: Santee, Calif - 2 dead

None of these incidents have changed the fact that you can walk into household name retail stores and, subject to various state and federal laws, choose your weapon from a rack of guns and ammunition and walk away.

For many Americans, including the three million members of the National Rifle Association, the right to bear arms is not only enshrined in the constitution, it is a key civil liberty.

The right was born out of the War of Independence when armed militias had the right to protect property and people.

It grew in importance as the union headed west into an environment where the only law was that of the gun and the hangman's noose.

A well regulated militia being neccessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed

US Constitution Second Amendment

That was more than 100 years ago. Gun control campaigners say the case for scrapping what they regard as an anachronistic right is now overwhelming.

There are an estimated 200 million privately held guns in the USA. One million weapons are in the hands of students, some of whom take the guns into high school.

More than 14,000 homicides were committed with firearms in 1996. Of the dead, 68 were children below the age of four. More than 5,500 of those killed were aged between 15 and 24.

Overall, the highest death rate per capita is for men aged between 20 and 24 at 30 per 100,000. Black males in low-income, inner-city areas, are even more likely to be shot.

In the 12 months prior to Denver there were seven fatal school shootings, which left 16 dead. Many inner-city high schools now use airport-style security gates to screen out weapons.

US Firearms deaths, 1996

Homicide: 14,037 Suicide: 18,166 Unintentional: 1,134 Police intervention: 290 Undetermined: 413 TOTAL: 34,040

SOURCE: National Center for Injury Control and Prevention

While these figures are an improvement on previous years, public opinion has arguably been turning slowly towards more controls.

Many newspapers, including key opinion formers, are questioning the wisdom of widespread gun ownership.

Former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hilary have emerged as prominent supporters of tougher controls.

The law

State laws on ownership, carrying and use of firearms differ widely. There are various levels of checks depending on what kind of weapon you want.

Click here to find out about recent legislation.

Some states allow the purchase of both rifles and handguns without any form of prior licence. Others have totally banned the carrying of handguns and are moving against "concealed weapons".

State laws often mirror the demographic of the population - large rural populations have retained a more relaxed attitude towards firearms than cities.

But even before the Columbine killings, the debate had intensified - and nowhere more so than in Colorado.

The National Rifle Association campaigned for months to persuade the state legislature to pass laws allowing the carrying of concealed weapons.

Denver Mayor Wellington Webb took out full-page newspaper adverts against the measure, arguing that there had been a 42% drop in homicides since tighter laws in 1994.

His campaign - coupled with the killings - led to the proposal being hastily shelved. Despite the killings, the NRA went ahead with its annual conference in Denver, albeit in a much more toned down form.

Under the gun

Two of the major gun control successes in recent years came when gun firms agreed to manufacture child-proof locks following the accidental deaths of 200 children and then President Bill Clinton pushed the "Brady Bill" through Congress.