The Second Amendment is one of the most important parts of our country’s Constitution. It gives people the ability to protect themselves and their loved ones from dangerous people. Although many want to strip people of this right, there are a plethora of examples that demonstrate why we shouldn’t.

Three armed burglars recently stormed into a car audio store and held up the owner. Fortunately, he had a gun of his own and opened fire on the burglars, killing two and injuring the third. This is why the Second Amendment is so important. Without a gun, he would’ve likely been killed.

Earlier this week, Jorge Valencia, the owner of First Class Car Audio, managed to thwart a potential robbery. According to reports, at around 8 o’clock in the evening, three unidentified men in their thirties, armed with weapons, tried robbing Valencia’s store in Downey, California. Valencia, however, was also armed. Fearing for his life, he pulled out his own gun and shot at them. The surviving criminal is currently in the hospital where he’s being questioned by police. Thankfully, Valencia was not injured during the attack.

Residents living nearby attempted to provide reporters with more information. “I heard…like eight gunshots [that] sounded like firecrackers,” said one witness. “And they told them to come out with their hands up,” she added, referring to what happened when the police finally arrived.

A second witness confirmed that there were roughly eight shots fired. “All I heard was gunshots. It was just like eight rounds or seven rounds,” he said.

A nearby security guard who was on duty at the time of the attack told reporters that this was not the first time the store had been targeted by dangerous people. “About four years ago, it happened there at the same place. They just were shooting bullets back and forth,” he explained.

Unfortunately, situations like this are not uncommon. Earlier this year, Fredrick Thornton, wearing a surgical mask and latex gloves, stormed into Convenient Food Mart in Cleveland, Ohio, armed with a handgun and attempted a robbery. One of the employees in the back heard some a commotion coming from the front of the store, and after arming himself with his own handgun, he raced to investigate. When he saw the want-to-be robber, he rushed up behind him and dug the barrel of the gun into his back. This led to a brief scuffle which ended with the robber being held at gunpoint on the ground until police arrived.

Without guns, many robberies would be much more tragic. This is because they help people protect themselves from dangerous people. Despite this, many continue to try and make it more difficult for law-abiding citizens to own a firearm. For instance, in Oregon, lawmakers recently introduced a bill restricting gun rights. Specifically, the legislation makes it possible for a family member to strip someone of their Second Amendment right. What’s worse, it also adds additional restrictions to firearm purchases both in person and online.

Many support the bill in Oregon because it makes it possible to disarm people who have shown signs of being violent or suicidal. They claim that if someone wrongly has their guns taken away, they can simply appeal. However, by taking away the person’s weapons and then making them go through a court process, rather than going through a court process to then take their guns, their right to due process is violated. This is because they were essentially seen as guilty and forced to prove their innocence, rather than the other way around.

Lawmakers must not be allowed to infringe on the Second Amendment rights of others. Guns help protect people both at home and at work. Without guns, innocent lives will be lost. Anyone supporting anti-gun legislation must be voted out of office and replaced with someone more reasonable.