Saturday marked the 9-year anniversary of the deadly shooting at Virginia Tech that claimed the lives of 32 people.

On April 16, 2007, 32 lives were taken, many of them young and anticipating the start of their lives. Many of the victims were weeks away from graduation and were either awaiting the start of the first job in their respective careers or excitedly looking for a good job.

Because of senseless violence, none of those 32 lives will ever be fulfilled.

The shooter responsible for killing 32 victims was Seung Hui Cho, a South Korean national, who had become a U.S. permanent resident.

A few weeks ago in Washington, an incident over a girl very well could have claimed the lives of two people — a 13-year-old and a 16-year-old. This, too, was an act of senseless violence that could’ve turned out much worse.

While many would blame it on guns, some would say that both incidents are a result of people who somehow gained access to guns, who had no business in doing so. Both incidents could have potentially been avoided had there been stricter laws related to who can access guns.

Cho was able to pass two separate background checks and successfully completed both handgun purchases after meeting gun dealers’ requirements and waiting the 30-day period between each gun purchase, in accordance with Virginia law. His success was attributed to the fact that he had not disclosed that a Virginia court had ordered him to undergo outpatient treatment at a mental health facility.

Because Cho wasn’t involuntarily committed as an inpatient, he was still eligible to buy guns under Virginia law. However, in Virginia, a magistrate can issue a detention order if a person is mentally ill and in need of hospitalization or treatment. They must also find that the person is an imminent danger to himself or others.

Virginia officials and other law experts have argued that under federal law, Cho was ineligible to purchase firearms because a Virginia Special Justice recommended outpatient treatment for him, as he’d been found “mentally defective.” The state of Virginia erred in not enforcing the requirements of federal law.

Gun laws should be strengthened to keep troubled individuals from obtaining guns. Getting rid of guns altogether will not keep incidents like this from happening.

The tragedy at Virginia Tech in 2007 and the recent event in Washington are isolated, but taking guns from law-abiding citizens won’t make criminals refrain from using guns to rob and/or kill people, just like making drugs illegal doesn’t stop drug users from doing drugs.

However, state gun laws and federal gun laws should be revisited in an effort to find cooperation between states and the federal government to come up with a policy that eliminates holes that let people who shouldn’t have access to guns, get guns.