Gun Control in the United States
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Gun Control in the United States A Comparative Survey of State Firearm Laws A project of the Open Society Institute’s Center on Crime, Communities & Culture and the Funders’ Collaborative for Gun Violence Prevention. April 2000 This report was written in March 2000. Please help update this information by notifying us of any changes in your state or local gun laws. Comments on the report are also welcome. TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction . 1 II. Summary of Results . 3 III. Scope and Focus of the Study . 5 GUN CONTROL IN THE UNITED STATES IV. Methodology . 8 Open Society Institute 400 West 59th Street V. Conclusion . 11 New York, NY 10019 [email protected] VI. Acknowledgements . 12 Design: Spire Integrated Design, Inc. www.spire-id.com I. INTRODUCTION Concern about the proliferation of weapons has intensified over the past year with a series of brutal reminders that Consider: there is no sanctuary from gun violence – not churches, schools, restaurants, workplaces or homes. While some inci- • A 12-year-old in North Carolina needs paren- dents make the cover of Time, most escape our awareness: tal permission to play Little League Baseball, on average, 85 firearm fatalities occur every day in the U.S. but not to possess a rifle or shotgun. In Gun violence in inner cities, disproportionately affecting Texas and five other states, there is no communities of color, attracts little media coverage. Suicides, minimum legal age requirement for gun which make up more than half of all gun deaths, are even possession. less visible. • In 48 states citizens can legally buy an assault weapon. In 43 states the purchase requires no Americans constitute one of the most heavily armed societies license or registration. in the developed world, with 40% of households containing guns.1 U.S. homicide rates are two to ten times higher than • In 46 states there is no limit on the in other developed countries.2 number of guns a person can buy at any one time. Only four states impose a limit of one Violence is a complex phenomenon that cannot be attributed handgun per month as a precaution against to any single cause. However, the outcome of a violent inci- illegal gun trafficking. dent is dramatically influenced by the weapons or methods used. Whether from assault or self-inflicted injury, the likeli- Considering the intensity of the debate about gun violence hood of death is especially high when a gun is involved. As prevention, public knowledge of current gun laws is extreme- criminologists Franklin Zimring and Gordon Hawkins have ly poor. Notions of tough or loose gun control are frequently pointed out, this is the main reason why the U.S. homicide mentioned in the media, but the question must be asked: by rate far exceeds those of other comparable Western coun- what standard? tries: assaults in the United States more often involve guns, and thus more often result in death.3 This report attempts to bring some clarity to this question by providing the first plain-English, comprehensive survey of A breakthrough in understanding gun violence came in the gun laws in all 50 states. It systematically compares the the mid-1980s with the recognition that it is a public health gun laws, scoring them on 30 weighted criteria grouped into hazard, a significant and preventable source of suffering three categories. It concentrates on the states because most and death. As with motor vehicle injuries, tuberculosis and gun laws are state laws, though federal law also plays an other serious public health problems, prevention is better important role. than a treatment. A key concept in prevention is an emphasis on “upstream” solutions — taking action near the source of The result is the most detailed picture ever of the patchwork the hazard. quilt formed by the gun laws of the United States. It gives policy-makers, the media and the public an opportunity to The popular conception of the source of gun violence is compare their state with others and consider specific reforms a shadowy illegal market, completely divorced from the legiti- to prevent gun crime – trafficking, robbery, threats, assaults, mate firearms industry. “Criminals will always get guns,” goes homicides – unintentional injuries and suicides by firearms. the refrain, as though the illegal market exists independently of the legal market. Two striking features are immediately apparent. First is the very low average state score, 9%. Only a handful of states achieved more than 50% of the 100 available points; the vast majority of jurisdictions lack even basic laws governing the sale and ownership of guns. Second is the breadth of the gun control spectrum across the country: out of a maximum of 100 for very strict laws, state scores ranged from -10 at the bottom of the scale (Maine) to over 70 at the top (Massachusetts and Hawaii). 1 2 Teret SP, Webster DW, Vernick JS et al. Support for new policies to Krug EG, Powell KE & Dahlberg LL. Firearm-related deaths in the United regulate firearms: results of two national surveys. New England Journal of Medicine States and 35 other high- and upper-middle-income countries. International 1998: 339: 813-818. UN Commission on Crime Prevention & Criminal Justice, Journal of Epidemiology 1998: 27: 214-221 International Study on Firearm Regulation, Vienna: United Nations 1997. 3 Zimring FE & Hawkins G. Crime is Not the Problem – Lethal Violence in America. New York: Oxford University Press 1997. A Comparative Survey of State Firearm Laws 1 In fact, the illegal market in guns lies directly “downstream” Whether at state or national levels, elected officials have from the legal market. Almost without exception, every found it easier to pass laws punishing the misuse of guns illegal gun in the United States began its life as a legal – laws that apply after violence is committed – rather than product, manufactured or imported by a company licensed preventing it. In the absence of systematic preventive policies, by the federal government and sold by a licensed dealer. a variety of “downstream” efforts have been made to reduce It may enter the illegal market in a number of ways. For gun violence, including voluntary buybacks, metal detectors example, it may be bought by a “straw purchaser” who hands in public buildings, more resources for police, longer sen- it over to a prohibited person; or it may be purchased lawfully tences for criminals, lawsuits against the gun industry, and by an individual who subsequently resells it privately or at a public awareness campaigns. Worthwhile though these may gun show. No matter how the gun ended up in the wrong be, they cannot substitute for a comprehensive legislative hands, its origins lie in a legitimate sale (see Figure 1 below). framework to regulate the build-up and movement of guns The journey is rapid: 30-40% of all crime handguns traced in the community. by the federal government were sold brand-new by a licensed dealer less than three years earlier.4 The key to dismantling Public opinion polls indicate that Americans recognize a link the illegal market is to stop the migration of guns from the between gun violence and easy access to firearms. National legal domain, by controlling the lawful sources of supply.5 surveys show consistently high levels of public support – over 70% – for tougher restrictions on the manufacture, sale and A focus on the illegal market is even less helpful in pre- ownership of guns.6 In this regard the public is far ahead of venting suicides and unintentional shootings, which together its legislators. account for the majority of gun deaths. Since no criminal intent is involved in these injuries, they may appear to be This report reveals how wide the gap is between the public completely different phenomena from homicides and armed mandate and levels of gun control across the nation. We robberies. Yet the original source of the agent of injury is the hope these new findings will help drive debate and action same: the mainstream (legal) gun industry. on this important issue. INHERI OR THROUGH AUCTIO THROUGH OR LA HARDW MANUF STRAW PURCHASE GANG ACTIVITY PRI IN TRADED OR SOLD LOCKED AWAY W ENFORCEMEN W TO DEALERS DEALERS TO (KITCHEN T (KITCHEN TA SOLD BY SOLD NC LICENSED GUN SHOP GUN LICENSED ARE STORE, NA STORE, ARE ACTURER, IMPORTER AND DISTRIBUTOR AND IMPORTER ACTURER, SELF DEFENSE STATUS SYMBOL SUICIDE LA BY SEIZED E SPORTING GOODS STORE. GOODS SPORTING SOLD OR TRADE OR SOLD STOLEN AT GUN SHOW GUN SPORT / PLINKING SALE) ABLE CRIMINAL RECREATION SELF DEFENSE T N W ENFORCEMEN W TIONAL RE TIONAL COLLECTOR CRIMINAL ILLEGAL POSSESSION VAT D , GUN SHOW GUN , LA E DESTROYED BY DESTROYED GIFT OR PRIZE CRIMINAL ENFORCEMEN W TA IL STORE OR STORE IL FAMILY VIOLENCE T , POLICE / LAW ENFORCEMENT T Figure 1. How guns move from legal to illegal ownership. Ovals show how firearm is used. A gun lasts longer than most other consumer products. Federal law demands that only the first retail sale be recorded. After that, Bars show how firearm is transferred from one individual to another. a gun may change hands many times without any documentation being required. Law-abiding owners can unwittingly contribute Blue represents legal use. to the illegal market by selling their guns second-hand, or giving Orange represents illegal or violent use. them away. This diagram gives examples of how a gun can move from legal to illegal ownership, sometimes being recycled through the legitimate market again. For law enforcement purposes, the record of the first retail buyer becomes virtually useless as soon as he or she transfers the gun to its second owner. 4 5 Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms.