- Gun Control
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- This listing of facts is derived from over 200 hours
of research and analysis of more than 100 articles, documents, and books.
Every statistic from a given year was chosen based on availability, and
not to slant the results by singling out a specific year that was different
from others. Especially when dealing with statistics, the determination
of what constitutes a credible fact and what does not, can contain elements
of personal subjectivity. It is our mission to minimize subjective information
and to provide highly factual content. Therefore, we are taking the additional
step of giving our readers a tool to determine for themselves the viability
of our work. To that end, we have provided four examples to illustrate
the type of material that was excluded because it did not meet Just Facts'
Standards of Credibility.
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- OWNERSHIP
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- * Private Firearm Ownership in the U.S. as of 1997
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- # of Guns # of Owners All Firearms 200-240 Million 60-65
Million Handguns 75-80 Million 30-35 Million (3)(7)
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- LOBBYING
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- * The National Rifle Association is the largest gun rights
lobbying organization in the United States. From 1997 through 1998, their
political action committee gave $1,330,111 to Republicans and $285,7000
to Democrats. (10)
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- * Handgun Control, Inc. is the largest gun control lobbying
organization in the United States. From 1997 through 1998, their political
action committee gave $136,892 to Democrats and $9,500 to Republicans.
(11)
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- FIREARM USE IN CRIME AND SELF DEFENSE
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- * In 1996, there were 10,744 murders with firearms in
the United States. (2)
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- * In 1996, there were 9,390 murders with handguns in
the United States. (2)
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- * In 1997 there were about 440,000 violent crimes committed
with firearms in the United States. (12)
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- * As of 1992, for about every 14 violent crimes (murder,
rape, etcÖ) committed in the United States, one person is sentenced
to prison. (62)
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- * As of 1992, average length of imprisonment for:
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- Murder 10.0 years Rape 7.6 years Aggravated Assault 3.4
years (63)
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- * In the early/mid 1990's, criminals on parole or early
release from prison committed about 5,000 murders, 17,000 rapes, and 200,000
robberies a year. (3)
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- * Americans use firearms to defend themselves from criminals
about 760,000 times a year. This figure is the lowest among a group of
15 nationwide polls done by organizations including Gallup and the Los
Angeles Times. (7)
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- * Approximately 11% of gun owners and 13% of handgun
owners have used their firearms for protection from criminals. (3)
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- * When citizens use guns for protection from criminals,
the criminal is wounded in about 1 out of every 100 instances, and the
criminal is killed in about 1 out of every 1000 instances. (3)
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- * Washington D.C. enacted a virtual ban on handguns in
1976. Between 1976 and 1991, Washington D.C.'s homicide rate rose 200%,
while the U.S. rate rose 12%. (1)
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- CONCEALED CARRY / RIGHT-TO-CARRY
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- * Concealed carry laws require law enforcement agencies
to issue handgun permits to all qualified applicants. Qualifications include
criteria such as age, a clean criminal record, and completing a firearm
safety course. (13)
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- * In 1986, nine states had concealed carry laws. (14)
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- * As of 1998, 31 states have concealed carry laws, and
about half the U.S. population lives in these states. (3)
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- * In 1996, Dr. John R. Lott of the University of Chicago
Law School published the results of a crime study conducted using FBI data
for all 3,045 U. S. counties from 1977 to 1992. (15)
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- * The study sought to answer the question, "What
happens to crime when states adopt concealed carry laws?" (15)
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- * Between 1977 and 1992, 10 states adopted concealed
carry laws. (7)
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- * Dr. Lott's study found that the implementation of concealed
carry laws created: -- no change in suicide rates, -- a .5% rise in accidental
firearm deaths, -- a 5% decline in rapes, -- a 7% decline in aggravated
assaults, -- and an 8% decline in murder
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- for the 10 states that adopted these laws between 1977
and 1992. (7) * Using 1995 numbers, this amounts to:
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- -- 1 more accidental gun death, -- 316 less murders,
-- 939 less rapes, -- and 14,702 less aggravated assaults
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- in these 10 states annually. (16)
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- For facts regarding the methodology of Lott's study,
criticisms of Lott, and criticisms of his study, click here.
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- * Florida adopted a right-to-carry law in 1987. At the
time the law was passed, critics predicted increases in violence. The founder
of the National Organization of Women, Betty Friedan stated: "lethal
violence, even in self defense, only engenders more violence." (13)
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- * When the law went into effect, the Dade County Police
began a program to record all arrest and non arrest incidents involving
concealed carry licensees. Between September of 1987 and August of 1992,
Dade County recorded 4 crimes committed by licensees with firearms. None
of these crimes resulted in an injury. The record keeping program was abandoned
in 1992 because there were not enough incidents to justify tracking them.
(13)(15)
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- * Florida adopted a right-to-carry law in 1987. Between
1987 and 1996, these changes occurred: Florida United States homicide rate
-36% -.4% firearm homicide rate -37% +15% handgun homicide rate -41% +24%
(3)
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- * 221,443 concealed carry licenses were issued in Florida
between October of 1987 and April of 1994. During that time, Florida recorded
18 crimes committed by licensees with firearms. (15)
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- * As of 1998, nationwide, there has been 1 recorded incident
in which a permit holder shot someone following a traffic accident. The
permit holder was not charged, as the grand jury ruled the shooting was
in self defense. (7)
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- * As of 1998, no permit holder has ever shot a police
officer. There have been several cases in which a permit holder has protected
an officer's life. (7)
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- BRADY BILL
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- * The Brady Bill was implemented on February 28, 1994.
This law established a national 5 business day waiting period on handgun
purchases through licensed dealers. It also required local authorities
to conduct background checks on handgun purchasers. The majority of Democrats
voted for this bill and the majority of Republicans voted against it. Bill
Clinton signed it into law. (18)(19)
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- * In July of 1997, the Supreme Court ruled that it was
unconstitutional for the federal government to require states to perform
Brady Bill background checks. At that point, 27 states had laws requiring
similar background checks and 23 states did not. (20)
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- * As of December of 1998, an amendment to the Brady Bill
replaced the five business day waiting period with a national "instant"
felon ID system. Dealers are required to conduct this background check
on all gun purchases, not just handgun purchases. This amendment was added
to the Brady Bill before the law was voted out of Congress. The majority
of Republicans voted for this amendment and the majority of Democrats voted
against it. (18)(19)
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- * John Lott's crime study found mixed results regarding
the adoption of waiting periods. The data showed no overall beneficial
effect on violent crime rates. There are instances where enraged people
buy a gun and quickly proceed to commit a crime with it. There are also
instances where people attempt to purchase a gun for self protection because
they have been threatened, and are murdered during a waiting period. (7)
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- * During the first 17 months of the Brady Bill, 7 people
were convicted of illegal attempts to buy handguns. (17)
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- * Between implementation of the Brady Bill in March 1994
and year end 1997, there have been 242,000 background checks that have
denied prospective purchasers permission to buy a handgun from licensed
gun dealers. Out of these, 9 people have been convicted of illegal attempts
to buy handguns. (21)(22)
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- * In the early 1990's, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco
and Firearms reported that 7% of armed career criminals obtain firearms
from licensed gun shops. (3)
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- * The Brady Bill was implemented in February of 1994.
In 1997, the number of violent crimes committed with firearms had fallen
25% since 1994, while the overall number of violent crimes had declined
14%. (18)(23)
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- ASSAULT WEAPONS
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- * The "Assault Weapons Ban" was enacted on
September 14, 1994. The majority of Democrats voted for it, and the majority
of Republicans voted against it. Bill Clinton signed it into law. (24)(19)
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- * This bill banned the manufacture, possession, and importation
of semiautomatic assault weapons for civilian use. Guns manufactured before
September 14th, 1994 were grandfathered. Guns manufactured after this date
(for use by the military, police, and government agencies) must be marked
with the date they are manufactured. (24)(41)(47)
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- * To identify an assault weapon, this bill uses objective
criteria, along with a list of 19 specific guns. (24)
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- * For example, semiautomatic rifles which accept a detachable
magazine are classified as "assault weapons" if they have two
of the five following features: folding stock, pistol grip, bayonet mount,
grenade launcher, threaded barrel for flash suppressor. (24)
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- * An assault weapon, as defined by this bill, does not
include fully automatic machine guns. Since 1934, a civilian must obtain
permission from the U.S. Treasury to legally own a fully automatic weapon.
(3)(64)
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- * In April of 1999, Bill and Hillary Clinton held a press
conference on gun control legislation. Hillary Clinton stated: "And
since the crime bill was enacted, 19 of the deadliest assault weapons are
harder to find on our streets. We will never know how many tragedies we've
avoided because of these efforts." (25)
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- * Assault weapons were involved in less than 1% of homicides
before the assault weapons ban took effect in 1994. The same is true as
of 1998. (3)
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- * As of 1998, about 13% of homicides involve knives,
5% involve bludgeons, and 6% are committed with hands and feet. (3)
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- * The Clinton administration prosecuted 4 people in 1997
and 4 people in 1998 for violating the assault weapons ban. (22)
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- ARMOR PIERCING BULLETS
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- * In an October of 1996 campaign stop, Bill Clinton met
with the widow of Police Officer Jerome Harrison Seaberry. Later at a political
rally, Bill Clinton cited Officer Seaberry's death as a reason to outlaw
armor piercing bullets. (7)
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- * Officer Seaberry died in a car crash. No guns or bullets
were involved. (7)
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- * Armor piercing bullets have been referred to in the
media as "cop killers." (37)
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- * As of 1998, no law enforcement officer has ever been
killed because an armor-piercing bullet defeated a bulletproof vest. (3)
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- SCHOOL SHOOTING
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- * Federal law 18 USC Section 922 prohibits the sale of
handguns to individuals under 21 years of age, and prohibits the sale of
any firearm or ammunition to individuals under 18 years of age. It also
generally prohibits anyone under 18 from possessing a handgun. (41)
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- * In 1998, an interview was done with children at a Los
Angeles youth home that provides mentoring, support, work, and protection
from gangs for over 2,000 children. When asked about the availability of
guns on the street, the response was laughter. A child who had joined the
home after spending a year in jail for robbery stated: "You can buy
a handgun anywhere on the street for $40, or they give it to you for free
if you tell your gang you're on your way to shoot someone." (42)
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- * Laws in the United States generally prohibit the sale,
possession, or use of cocaine. About 200,000 American children, age 12-17
used cocaine in 1997. About 2.5 million 12-17 year olds (11.4%) used an
illicit drug in 1997.(37)(43)
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- * Seven days after the 1999 Littleton, Colorado school
massacre, Bill and Hillary Clinton held a press conference on gun control
legislation. Bill Clinton stated: "And we smile about that, but there
are some people who would be on this platform today who lost their seats
in 1994 because they voted for the Brady Bill and they voted for the assault
weapons ban, and they did it in areas where people could be frightened."
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- "Do we know for absolutely certain that if we had
every reasonable law and the ones I'm going to propose here that none of
these school violence things would have happened? No. But we do know one
thing for certain; we know there would have been fewer of them, and there
would have been fewer kids killed in the last several years in America.
We know that for certain. We know that." (Applause)(25)
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- * In about 5 years since enactment of the Brady Bill
and Assault Weapons Ban in 1993, there have been 9 "school massacres."
(53)
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- * Federal law 18USC Section 922 generally prohibits civilians
from having guns in school zones. (41)(51)
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- * About 6,000 children were caught with guns at school
in 1997 and 1998. Out of these, 13 were federally prosecuted. (52)
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- * In Boston, the one city as of 1997 that has collected
reliable data regarding the previous arraignments of juvenile murderers,
77% of juveniles who murdered other juveniles had prior criminal arraignments.
The average perpetrator had 9.7 arraignments. (7)
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- * In the 1997 Pearl, Mississippi school massacre, sixteen
year old Luke Woodham stabbed his mother to death and then proceeded to
school where he shot 9 students, killing 2 of them. An assistant principal
using a gun stopped Woodham. The assistant principal kept the gun locked
in his car outside the school zone and ran to his car to obtain the gun.
The assistant principal controlled Woodham for four and a half minutes
before the police arrived. (51)(53)
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- * John Lott's crime study found that states which adopted
concealed carry laws saw an 84% decrease in the number of multiple victim
public shootings, resulting in a 90% decline in deaths arising from such
instances. (51)
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- ACCIDENTS
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- * 1995 Fatal Accident Totals
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- Motor Vehicles 43,900 Falls 12,600 Poisonings 10,600
Drownings 4,500 Fires 4,100 Choking 2,800 Firearm 1,400 (1.5% of fatal
accidents)
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- * For Children 14 and Under
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- Motor Vehicles 3,059 Drownings 1,024 Fires 883 Choking
213 Firearm 181 (2.7% of fatal accidents) Falls 127 Poisonings 80 (8)
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- * There were 259 fatal firearm accidents for 15-19 year
olds in 1995. (8)
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- * There were 6,319 fatal motor vehicle accidents for
15-20 year olds in 1996. (9)
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- * As of 1998, 37,000 National Rifle Association (NRA)
Instructors and Coaches are conducting firearm safety and proficiency programs
that reach nearly 700,000 participants a year. (8)
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- * In 1988, The NRA developed a gun safety program for
schoolchildren (pre-K through 6th grade). As of 1998, the program has reached
about 10 million children. The goal of the program is to teach children
what to do if they should encounter a firearm. Children are taught to "STOP!
Don't Touch. Leave the Area. Tell an Adult." (8)
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- * The NRA's 3 rules of gun safety are:
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- 1) Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction (whether
loaded or unloaded) 2) Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready
to shoot. 3) Always keep the gun unloaded until ready to shoot.(8)
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- CONSTITUTION
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- * In the Bill of Rights, the second amendment to the
Constitution reads: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security
of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not
be infringed.
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- * Gun control proponents have argued that the use of
the word "people" in this Amendment, refers not to the civilian
population of the United States, but to the State National Guard Units.
(54)
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- * Gun rights proponents have argued that the use of the
word "Militia" in this Amendment, refers not to the State National
Guard Units, but to the citizens of the United States. (54)
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- * James Madison was responsible for proposing the Second
Amendment and was one of three authors of the Federalist papers. The Federalist
Papers were published in newspapers to explain, argue for, and support
ratification of the Constitution. (55)(56)
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- * In Federalist Paper 46, James Madison argued that a
standing federal army could not be capable of conducting a coup to take
over the nation. He estimated that based on the country's population at
the time, a federal standing army could not field more than 25,000 - 30,000
men. He wrote: "To these would be opposed a militia amounting to near
half a million of citizens with arms in their hands, officered by men chosen
from among themselves, fighting for their common liberties, and united
and conducted by governments possessing their affections and confidence."
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- "Besides the advantage of being armed, which the
Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, the existence
of subordinate governments, to which the people are attached, and by which
the militia officers are appointed, forms a barrier against the enterprises
of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of
any form can admit of. Notwithstanding the military establishments in the
several kingdoms of Europe, which are carried as far as the public resources
will bear, the governments are afraid to trust the people with arms."
(56)
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- * Quotes from Thomas Jefferson, the author of The Declaration
of Independence: "What country can preserve its liberties if its rulers
are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit
of resistance? Let them take arms."
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- --Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, 1787.
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- "A strong body makes the mind strong. As to the
species of exercises, I advise the gun. While this gives moderate exercise
to the body, it gives boldness, enterprise and independence to the mind.
Games played with the ball, and others of that nature, are too violent
for the body and stamp no character on the mind. Let your gun therefore
be your constant companion of your walks."
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- --Thomas Jefferson to Peter Carr, 1785.
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- "The constitutions of most of our States assert
that all power is inherent in the people; that they may exercise it by
themselves in all cases to which they think themselves competent (as in
electing their functionaries executive and legislative, and deciding by
a jury of themselves in all judiciary cases in which any fact is involved),
or they may act by representatives, freely and equally chosen; that it
is their right and duty to be at all times armed; that they are entitled
to freedom of person, freedom of religion, freedom of property, and freedom
of the press." --Thomas Jefferson to John Cartwright, 1824. (57)(58)(59)
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- CITATIONS
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- "TEN MYTHS ABOUT GUN CONTROL." Viewed in January
of 1999 on the National Rifle Association web site, www.nra.org
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- "Firearm Facts." Viewed in January of 1999
on the Handgun Control, Inc. web site, www.handguncontrol.org
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- "1998 NRA Fact Card." Viewed in January of
1999 on the National Rifle Association web site, www.nra.org
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- "1995 Firearms Deaths." Viewed in January of
1999 on the Handgun Control, Inc. web site, www.handguncontrol.org
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- Independent calculations performed with 1996 data from:
"Suicide in Japan : Present State and Future Directions for Prevention."
Transcultural Psychiatry, Volume 35 Issue 2, June 1998.
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- "U.S.A. SUICIDE: 1996 OFFICIAL FINAL DATA."
Prepared for the American Association of Suicidology by John L. McIntosh,
PhD., 11/22/98.
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- Austin, Lana Kim White. "Heston stresses firearm
safety, appreciation." Washington Times National Weekly Edition, December
15-21, 1997.
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- Lott, John R. Jr. More Guns, Less Crime. The University
of Chicago Press, 1998. Pages 1, 11, 43 "ILA Research & Information
Division Fact Sheet."
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- National Rifle Association of America ñ Institute
for Legislative Action ñ Research & Information Division, 3/1/98.
Source Cited: The National Center for Health Statistics.
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- Cory, Lindsey V. "Graduate licensing: Life in the
slow lane for teens?" Washington Times National Weekly Edition, July
20-26, 1998.
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- "Gun Rights PAC Contributions to Federal Candidates,
1997-1998." Viewed in February of 1999 on the Center For Responsive
Politics web site, www.crp.org
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- "Gun Control PAC Contributions to Federal Candidates,
1997-1998." Viewed in February of 1999 on the Center For Responsive
Politics web site, www.crp.org
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- Response to question posed to Dr. John R. Lott, Jr. Received
via e-mail in April of 1999.
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- Editorial. "The case of the outgunned thug."
Washington Times National Weekly Edition, January 5-11, 1998.
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- "Less Crime in Concealed Weapons States." Fact-O-Rama.
Conservative News Service, 11/24/98.
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- Lott, John R. Jr. and Mustard, David B. "Crime,
Deterrence, and Right-to-Carry Concealed Handguns." University of
Chicago School of Law, 7/26/96.
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