Gun Policy News
Pro-gun lobbying and opposition to gun control
United States,Mexico,Guatemala
Only Three Countries Have a Constitutional Right to Bear Arms
23 November 2022
Business Insider
- Only three countries in the world currently have a constitutional right to own a gun: the US, Mexico, and Guatemala.
- Six other countries used to have a constitutional right to bear arms, but they've since repealed those laws.
- The US is the only country with a right to keep and bear arms with no constitutional restrictions.
The right to keep and bear arms is a longstanding, often glorified right protected by the US Constitution.
Americans own nearly half of all... (GunPolicy.org)
The Shoddy Conclusions of the Man Shaping the Gun-Rights Debate
3 November 2022
New Yorker / The Trace
In 1957, the small-arms manufacturer Armalite created the AR-15—short for Armalite Rifle—at the invitation of the U.S. Army, which was seeking an effective lightweight combat weapon. When the Department of Defense reviewed a version of the rifle in 1962, during the early stages of the Vietnam War, its report stated that the gun's "lethality" and "reliability" were "particularly impressive." From forty-nine feet away, it noted, an Army Ranger fired a round into a... (GunPolicy.org)
Insecurity and the Right to Bear Arms in Nigeria
4 November 2020
Guardian (Nigeria)
One of the cardinal responsibilities of government is the safeguard of lives and properties, provided under Section14 (2) (b) of the 1999 Constitution as amended. So paramount is this responsibility that the entire economic, social and political progress of any society depends on it.
Nigeria for the past decade has witnessed unprecedented amount of bloodshed, destruction of properties and displacement of people from their native homes and places of business. The level... (GunPolicy.org)
Biden pushes the most expansive gun regulation in US history
26 October 2020
Trace, Media release
Joe Biden's Evolution on Guns
Early in his career, Biden said gun regulation was ineffective. Several decades — and one notorious crime bill — later, he's pushing the most expansive reform platform in history.
On the night of August 25, 1994, a complicated package of legislation championed by then-Senator Joe Biden looked like it had gathered enough votes. Along with Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, Biden stood in front of television cameras and reporters... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Ownership Soars In Brazil Under Bolsonaro
31 March 2020
New York Times
A year into his presidency, Jair Bolsonaro and his sons have helped fuel a gun rights movement that had little popular support, or political clout, in the country before he took office.
President Jair Bolsonaro has galvanized gun culture in Brazil.
His trademark campaign sign was a hand folded into the shape of a gun. One of his first moves in office was to ease gun ownership rules. His three oldest sons, politicians themselves, have been fierce proponents of... (GunPolicy.org)
New Zealand Firearm Registry 'Crucial' to Any Gun Law Reform
3 March 2020
Newsroom
Since countries the world over began regulating firearm ownership in the 19th century, there have been three central pillars of gun control policy common to almost every nation: seeing ownership as a privilege instead of a right, a licensing system for owners, and a registry of weapons.
New Zealand never followed through with all three. While no judge in the country would ever overturn precedent to insist firearm ownership is a right, the nation has generally had... (GunPolicy.org)
Shooting in Sydney Raises Questions About Gun Control
2 October 2019
New York Times
SYDNEY, Australia — A gunman was shot dead by the police on Wednesday after an hourlong shooting spree across western Sydney that targeted a home and two police stations.
The police said the man, firing a shotgun in the middle of a busy suburb, wounded several officers, including one who suffered a head injury.
The shooting comes at a time of rising concern among gun control advocates in Australia who have been arguing for years that the country's strict gun laws... (GunPolicy.org)
Survey Reveals a Third of NZ Gun Owners Distrust Gun Lobby
13 August 2019
The Conversation
The terrorist attacks on the Christchurch Muslim community on 15 March this year resulted in a political response that was decidedly different from what usually follows mass shootings in the United States.
The speed of legislative action, banning military-style semi-automatic weapons (MSSAs) within days of the attack, was remarked on both at home and around the world. Some gun owners began handing over their MSSAs to police voluntarily after the attacks, and hundreds... (GunPolicy.org)
John Howard Rejects NRA Criticism of Australian Gun Laws
31 July 2019
Sydney Morning Herald / The Age
John Howard has rejected claims by the new president of America's National Rifle Association that the gun law reforms that he championed as prime minster after the Port Arthur massacre are ineffective and unpopular.
"I was in Australia not long after the tragedy in 1996 that led to that nation's repressive gun-control laws. In looking back, we must be careful to isolate and weigh the facts," Carolyn Meadows wrote in her column for the NRA's official gun rights journal... (GunPolicy.org)
PM Ardern on Gun Control in US and NZ
15 May 2019
Washington Post
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern spoke out this week about a matter that has long puzzled many foreign observers of the United States: the country's inability to rein in gun violence.
Speaking to CNN's Christiane Amanpour, the prime minister said: "Australia experienced a massacre and changed their laws. New Zealand had its experience and changed its laws. To be honest with you, I do not understand the United States."
Ardern was referring both to a 1996... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Law Change Fast-track has 'Outpaced' Gun Lobby
2 April 2019
Radio New Zealand
The speed with which the government has fast-tracked changes to firearms laws has left the gun lobby in a spin, according to an Australian academic.
By the end of next week, politicians expect the Arms Amendment Bill to come into force.
It will ban semi-automatic weapons and military style semi-automatics, with the exception of shotguns and low-calibre rifles.
Parts, magazines and ammunition which can make a gun illegal will also be banned, and there will be tougher... (GunPolicy.org)
No Other Party Has Hammered Our Gun Laws Like This One
1 April 2019
Sydney Morning Herald, Opinion
Last Friday the leader of the Shooter, Fishers and Farmers Party, Robert Borsak, headed a press conference seeking to distance his party from One Nation. Borsak claimed his parties' gun policies are not as extreme as One Nation's and are more "dead centre".
Yet one only has to look at the impact the party has had on Australia's gun laws and the party's current and past gun policies to see that a different story emerges. In October 2017, Borsak told the Herald that he... (GunPolicy.org)
Pro-gun Groups Used Ministerial Advisory Panel to Lobby Against Tighter Laws
20 October 2018
Guardian
Groups wanted former justice minister to recognise that 'lawful use of firearms can also have benefit to society'
Pro-gun groups used a ministerial advisory panel to lobby against mandatory 28-day cooling-off periods for firearms owners and to call for changes to the "genuine need" provisions which make up the backbone of Australia's gun laws.
Documents obtained by Guardian Australia under freedom of information laws reveal the former justice minister Michael Keenan... (GunPolicy.org)
Profile on Life and Work of Rebecca Peters
7 July 2018
Sydney Morning Herald
Flory Teletor was 17 when she began living with her boyfriend, Santo, in a cramped apartment in Guatemala City. Santo, who was 20, worked as a security guard. He was violent and controlling. He gave Flory a daily allowance of 20 quetzals ($3.50). She had to account for every cent; when she failed to do so, he would beat her. Sometimes, he would brandish the pistol he used for work, even shooting above her head. Flory was terrified, but she had already fled an abusive... (GunPolicy.org)
Australia's Gun Laws Can't Work in America – For Now
30 March 2018
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Thirteen mass shootings in 18 years, 112 victims shot dead. While this may seem to describe contemporary America, it actually describes a late 20th-century period in Australia. The country's final slaughter occurred in Tasmania in 1996 – the Port Arthur massacre. A lone, "pathetic social misfit" – as described by the judge – killed 35 people. The first 29 bullets from this young man's AR-15 rifle ended the lives of 20 innocents in just 90 seconds.
For... (GunPolicy.org)
Repeal the Second Amendment - John Paul Stevens
27 March 2018
New York Times, Opinion
Rarely in my lifetime have I seen the type of civic engagement schoolchildren and their supporters demonstrated in Washington and other major cities throughout the country this past Saturday. These demonstrations demand our respect. They reveal the broad public support for legislation to minimize the risk of mass killings of schoolchildren and others in our society.
That support is a clear sign to lawmakers to enact legislation prohibiting civilian ownership of... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Laws and Ownership in Italy
23 March 2018
Local (Italy)
Italians do not have a fundamental right to bear arms, and there are tough laws regulating both ownership and use of guns in the country.
Before buying a gun, you first need to get a gun purchasing licence ( Licenza di porto d'armi o Nulla osta) -- this is also necessary if you inherit or are given a weapon. To be eligible, you must be over 18, have a certificate from a shooting range to prove you can safely use the firearm, have a clean criminal record, and state that... (GunPolicy.org)
Australian Gun Laws Successful, Study Finds
13 March 2018
Australian (Sydney)
The gun laws enacted after the Port Arthur Massacre have unequivocally prevented mass shootings, a new study says.
The National Firearms Agreement was enacted after the 1996 tragedy in which 35 people were killed. The legislation included uniform gun registration, banned private gun sales and civilian ownership of semiautomatic weapons, removed self-defence as a reason to hold a firearm license and standardised penalties.
The University of Sydney study analysed... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Advocate Leader Linked to Far-Right Anti-Immigrant Group
7 March 2018
Guardian
Special report: Firearm Owners United founder James Buckle attended United Patriots Front rallies
A pro-gun lobby group that helped to bankroll One Nation's push for seats in the Queensland state election has links to a far-right anti-Islam group whose leader once advocated for Adolf Hitler's portrait to be hung in classrooms.
As Australia's strict gun laws come under pressure from the gun lobby, a Guardian investigation has uncovered links between one pro-gun group... (GunPolicy.org)
Oceania,Europe,Asia,Americas,Africa,Yemen,China,Israel,Russia,Brazil,United Kingdom,Germany,India,Canada,Austria,Australia,Mexico,United States,Japan,South Africa
How to Buy a Gun in 15 Countries
2 March 2018
New York Times
Many Americans can buy a gun in less than an hour. The process takes months in some countries. Here are the basic steps for how most people buy a gun in 15 of them. Many countries have exceptions for specialized professions, and local laws vary.
United States
1) Pass an instant background check that considers criminal convictions, domestic violence and immigration status.
2) Buy a gun. Many states have additional buying restrictions, including waiting periods and... (GunPolicy.org)
Trump & Turnbull: US to Consider an Australian Model on Guns?
23 February 2018
New York Times
WASHINGTON — One of the most powerful moments during President Trump's meeting with survivors and relatives of the Florida school shooting this week came when a student pleaded with the president to do what Australia did after a similar tragedy.
As it happened, Mr. Trump had an opportunity on Friday to get a firsthand report on Australia's crackdown on guns when he hosted the country's prime minister at the White House. But both men quickly discounted any... (GunPolicy.org)
Florida Shooting Survivors Are Fighting Back
21 February 2018
Guardian
The students who survived a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school are aiming to reshape America's gun control debate.
"You're either with us or against us," senior Emma González told politicians on Sunday, following a viral speech to gun control advocates the day before when she promised, "We are going to be the last mass shooting."
Many people see the American gun control debate as a helpless stalemate dominated by the intransigence of the National Rifle... (GunPolicy.org)
US Virgin Islands Shows Registration-Confiscation Link
30 October 2017
NRA Publications (USA)
If there were ever a perfect example of the endgame of the gun-ban crowd and their ultimate weapon -- registration of firearm owners -- it comes with the order by the governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands to confiscate registered firearms from law-abiding citizens as a response to the impending devastation of Hurricane Irma.
Gov. Kenneth Mapp, in a toxic Sept. 4 order, proclaimed that the activated National Guard "is authorized and directed to seize arms,... (GunPolicy.org)
The Gun Nuts In Our Parliament
14 October 2017
Saturday Paper (Australia)
While Australian gun laws are lauded as the world's most stringent, fringe political parties and lobbyists are doing their best to erode them.
Of course David Leyonhjelm is troubled by what happened in Las Vegas two weeks ago, when Stephen Paddock, with his arsenal of 23 guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition, carried out America's worst modern-day mass killing. Of course he finds it "disturbing".
From a distance of several hundred metres, high in the Mandalay... (GunPolicy.org)
The Killer Quirk Hiding in Australia's Gun Laws
7 October 2017
Sydney Morning Herald
It has become part of the script of the larger American mass shootings. Amid the public expressions of grief and disbelief, the utterances of prayers and the tributes to the dead, Australian-style gun laws become, for a time, part of the American national debate.
The effectiveness of Australian-style gun laws has even crept into the diplomatic conversation. After she spoke with her American counterpart Rex Tillerson this week, Australia's Foreign Affairs Minister Julie... (GunPolicy.org)
Lobbyists Say States Should Be Allowed to Personalise NFA
6 October 2017
Queensland Country Life
There has been immediate condemnation of the findings of a report into Australia's gun laws, commissioned by Gun Control Australia.
The report, authored by Philip Alpers, an associate professor of public health at the University of Sydney, claimed that Australia's tough gun laws had been significantly watered down by state governments since they were introduced under the National Firearms Agreement in the days after the Port Arthur Massacre in 1996.
As well as... (GunPolicy.org)
Australian Gun Lobbyists Push for Higher Calibre IPSC Pistols
28 April 2017
Canberra Times (Australia)
A firearms group will lobby the ACT government to allow sport shooters to use larger calibre target pistols in official competitions.
Australian Firearms Management Lobby Group recently registered on the ACT's lobbyist register.
Its head, William John Wilcher said the registration was unrelated to the ACT's recent move to restrict rapid fire lever action shotguns.
"The lobby group is not engaged in an way, shape or form to lobby in respect to lever action shotguns,... (GunPolicy.org)
Australian Gun Group Targeted Ruling Parties With $45,000
19 March 2017
Sunday Telegraph (Sydney)
A pro-gun group appointed to advise the federal government on its national firearms agreement donated more than $45,000 to the Liberal and National parties last year.
Less than a year after the Shooting Industry Foundation of Australia (SIFA) was established, the group was appointed to the government's Firearms Industry Reference Group (FIRG) to provide advice on technical elements of the National Firearms Agreement.
Adler shotgun importer Robert Nioa, the... (GunPolicy.org)
Shooters Union of Queensland Analysis of NFA 2017
10 March 2017
Shooters Union Australia, Blog
Following the release of the 2017 version of the National Firearms Agreement, Shooters Union had a look at the document, comparing it to the 1996 version, understanding what the clauses mean and looking at what legislation has to change to enact the NFA.
Being largely a re-hash of the 1996 NFA, all of the restrictive, discriminatory clauses remain and then some. Even the provisions from 1996 that have been proven to be unworkable in the intervening years, have been... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Lobby Donated $350,000 to Australian Politicians in a Year
15 February 2017
Guardian
Australian political parties accepted more than $300,000 in donations over 12 months from the firearms lobby, gun suppliers and manufacturers, sparking concern among gun control groups.
An analysis of the latest Australian Electoral Commission donation disclosures by Gun Control Australia has revealed that firearms groups donated $353,000 to various federal political bodies around the country. The donations were made in the 2015-16 financial year, during a period when... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Owners' Addresses Revealed in Simple Privacy Blunder
28 December 2016
Sydney Morning Herald
Dozens of home addresses of gun owners have been easily obtained in a simple privacy blunder that a veteran police officer fears may be utilised by thieves.
The treasure trove of addresses has been discovered by simple online searches of publicly available information. It has prompted a warning from NSW Police's Firearms Squad to "use common sense when providing personal details in conjunction with information about firearms".
A gun owner and veteran police officer,... (GunPolicy.org)
Why Not Smart Guns in This High-Tech Era? - NY Times
26 November 2016
New York Times, Editorial
The Department of Justice has issued official guidelines for the manufacture of smart guns — weapons that, like smartphones, have technology to allow only the rightful owners to use them. The guidelines aim to "shape the future of gun safety technology," as called for under an executive order issued in January by President Obama, in the face of Congress's refusal to deal with the nation's horrendous toll of gun deaths.
Nearly 7,000 children committed suicide with... (GunPolicy.org)
How America's Gun Violence Research Ban Hurt Science
23 November 2016
Huffington Post (USA)
In 1996, Congress passed the Dickey Amendment, effectively banning government research on gun violence. But these days, former Republican representative Jay Dickey sees his namesake amendment for what it was: A mistake.
"I wish we had started the proper research and kept it going all this time," Dickey told The Huffington Post last year. "I have regrets."
Now, a research letter published as part of a series on firearm violence in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Owners Plan to Eliminate Curbs on Ownership - NYT
22 November 2016
New York Times
HOUSTON — Before the election, gun rights activists were so worried Hillary Clinton would win the presidency that some of them bought extra ammunition and guns, fearing a crackdown on certain weapons, bullets and magazines.
They're not worried now. Instead, since the election of Donald J. Trump, gun advocates have been rejoicing, crowing about their political clout and plotting ways to eliminate many remaining curbs on gun ownership and use as they await one of the... (GunPolicy.org)
Trump Softens Gun Promises, Gun Rights Not a Priority [ES]
18 November 2016
Newsweek (USA)
[Translated Summary: During his presidential campaign Donald Trump promised to swiftly "unsign" the executive actions President Obama issued in January regarding background checks and to abolish gun-free zones at schools and on military bases. In addition, he promised to allow Americans to carry hidden handguns across all 50 states. However, after the election he softened his tone and it now appears that gun rights are mo longer a priority.]
A lo largo de sus casi 17... (GunPolicy.org)
NRA Fuels Gun Paranoia in the Age of Trump - Chicago Tribune
18 November 2016
Chicago Tribune
There were plenty of agitated and even hysterical reactions to Donald Trump's election victory, but none more surprising than the one expressed in a direct mail letter I got a couple of days afterward.
"Our worst nightmare is staring us right in the face," it declared. "The attacks will be hitting everywhere, every day." It invited me to fill out a survey. "By answering this survey today, you're drawing a line in the sand — making it clear to politicians across... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Policy Pointless Without Funds for Public Health Research
17 November 2016
Dallas Morning News (Texas), Editorial
To make an informed decision, you need information. And that's exactly what everybody involved in America's bitter gun debate doesn't have.
Guns kill more than 33,000 Americans a year, yet the clock stopped on government research into this epidemic two decades ago. As is frequently noted, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has funded no in-depth studies of gun violence, its causes, or proposals for its reduction since 1996. That's when the so-called... (GunPolicy.org)
Stiffer Sentences for Illegal Gun Possession in Argentina [ES]
16 November 2016
La Nación (Argentina), Agencia DyN
[Translated Summary: Argentina's Chamber of Deputies approved a bill that sets more severe sentences for gun carrying and possession. For illegal possession, sentences can go from six months to eight years if the firearm has been modified from its original condition. And for illegal carrying, sentences can be from four to eight years, depending on the case.]
Cámara de Diputados aprobó hoy y giró al Senado un proyecto impulsado por el Frente Renovador y apoyado por... (GunPolicy.org)
Stricter US Gun Laws Linked to a Reduction in Homicide [FR]
16 November 2016
Tribune de Genève
[Translated summary: An analysis of 30 studies published since 1970 has concluded that stricter gun laws are linked to a reduction in homicide in the United States. Background checks and licensing are specially effective. Another study published by JAMA linked a Florida law that gives citizens the right to use a firearm if they feel in danger to an increase of 24% in the rate of homicide.]
Des lois plus strictes sur le contrôle de la circulation des armes à feu sont... (GunPolicy.org)
US States with Tighter Gun Laws Have Fewer Homicides [ES]
14 November 2016
La Información (Dominican Republic)
[Translated Summary: According to a US study, states with tighter firearms laws show a higher decrease in firearm deaths. The most successful laws are those ones which improve background checks for potential buyers and require a permit to buy a firearm, among others.]
Leyes más estrictas para controlar la circulación de armas de fuego están relacionadas con una reducción de los homicidios en Estados Unidos, concluye un análisis de más de 30 estudios publicados... (GunPolicy.org)
Florida's 'Stand Your Ground' Law Linked to Homicide Increase
14 November 2016
Time (USA)
Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law, which gives widespread legal immunity to people who use lethal force in self-defense, may be responsible for an increase in homicides in the state, according to a new study released Monday.
Since the controversial law was implemented in 2005, Florida's overall monthly homicide rate has increased 24.4% and the homicide by firearm rate is up 31.6%, according to the study, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun-carrying Restrictions May Be Wiped Out Under Trump
14 November 2016
Guardian
With Donald Trump in the White House, tourists from other states may soon be able to bring their guns to shops of Fifth Avenue, the plaza at Rockefeller Center and other New York City sights.
Advocates say they expect Congress to finally pass a sweeping gun rights law that could dismantle local gun-carrying restrictions in states including New York, New Jersey, Maryland, California and Hawaii.
These changes could come soon. If Congress passes a federal right-to-carry... (GunPolicy.org)
Why Trump's Victory Just Wounded US Gunmakers
9 November 2016
Bloomberg (USA)
For all of President-Elect Donald Trump's warnings that Hillary Clinton was coming for America's guns, it turns out that it was his surprise victory that came with immediate pain for the firearm industry. Shares of gunmakers were tanking on Wednesday morning as investors prepare for a gun-friendly Trump presidency. The somewhat counterintuitive thesis goes like this: With the threat of stronger gun control laws fading under a Trump administration, fewer people will rush... (GunPolicy.org)
President Trump: What Can He Do About US Gun Laws? [FR]
9 November 2016
La Croix (France)
[Translated summary: Trump has said that he supports more freedom in the purchase of firearms. But, there already are specific gun control laws in several states, and it is not going to be possible to decree "total freedom" in purchases on a federal level. For example, California has just passed a law that makes background checks mandatory for buying ammunition.]
Ce qu'il a dit
Donald Trump a défendu une liberté totale sur les ventes d'armes, quitte à exercer son... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Control Measures Expected to Win in Four US States
8 November 2016
Reuters
Gun control-related ballot measures in four states are expected to pass on Tuesday, opinion polls showed, after gun safety advocates poured a massive amount of money into backing the initiatives.
In Maine and Nevada, residents are voting on whether to mandate universal background checks for firearm sales, including private handgun transactions.
If those two measures pass, half of all Americans would live in states that have such expanded checks. Eighteen states and... (GunPolicy.org)
California to Pass Background Checks for Purchase of Ammo
4 November 2016
New York Times, Editorial
While Congress shamefully fails to face up to the toll of gun carnage, California's lawmakers and voters are forging ahead with innovative safety measures, including mandatory background checks for the purchase of ammunition, not just guns.
The focus on ammunition sales, for which there are no federal controls, is a creative addition to Proposition 63, a ballot initiative that polls indicate should pass on Tuesday. It is being watched as a barometer of the re-emergence... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Makers, FBI Data Point to US Firearm Sales Increase [ES]
4 November 2016
HispanTV (Iran)
[Translated summary: Due to the tense political climate, American firearm manufacturers report a strong increase in sales. A report by the FBI shows that gun sale background checks grew 18% in October. One of the main firearm manufacturers in the US, Sturm, Ruger & Co, registered an increase of 34% in sales in the third trimester of 2016.]
Los fabricantes de armas de fuego estadounidenses reportan un fuerte crecimiento de sus ventas de armas en el país por el tenso... (GunPolicy.org)
Washington's Gun Control Initiative Is Unfair to the Mentally Ill
3 November 2016
Crosscut (US), Opinion
It was with mixed emotions that I approached the writing of this article against Initiative 1491, a measure that seeks to limit gun violence but does so at the expense of stereotyping the mentally ill and unnecessarily short-circuiting due process under the law. I knew, when Crosscut requested it, that it would be the last I would write for this campaign. Honestly, I had become very discouraged with the media bias I had encountered and felt like I was living the story... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Buyers Stockpiling Firearms Ahead of Election Day
3 November 2016
Salon (US)
With just days left before American voters decide who will replace President Barack Obama, many in the nation's gun-owning public seem to be preparing for a dystopian future of jackbooted liberal government thugs prying guns — as the popular slogan goes — from their cold dead hands.
On Wednesday executives at the country's top firearms manufacturer said they're adequately prepared to meet demand from a postelection gun-buying surge if Democrats make significant... (GunPolicy.org)
US$ Millions Spent to Expand Gun Sale Background Checks
2 November 2016
New York Times, Reuters
Gun safety advocates are pouring tens of millions of dollars into Maine and Nevada to support ballot initiatives that would mandate background checks for gun sales in an effort to clinch state-level victories after years of failed drives in Congress.
The avalanche of money spent on supporting such initiatives ahead of the Nov. 8 vote could hand gun control organizations their biggest win since they failed to secure the passage of federal legislation after the massacre... (GunPolicy.org)
Five US Gun Violence Researchers Get $3.3 Million in Grants
2 November 2016
The Trace (USA)
Federal dollars for research into gun violence are hard to come by, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reluctant to step over a 20-year Congressional restriction on funding firearms studies.
A rare bright spot emerged last week, however, when the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) awarded more than $3.3 million to five private institutions for firearms research. The funding will support inquiries into some of the most pressing questions regarding gun... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Control Groups Aiming Their Money at State Ballots
2 November 2016
NPR (USA)
Gun control has been a minor theme of this year's presidential election, as Hillary Clinton promises to close "loopholes" in the background checks for gun purchasers, and Donald Trump pledges "unwavering support" for the Second Amendment.
The real battle over guns, though, has been waged at the state level this year — with a new emphasis on ballot initiatives.
Washington is a prime example. Like many western states, it has a tradition of permissive gun laws; there's... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Maker Sees Firearm Sales Soar as US Election Looms
2 November 2016
CNN
Sturm, Ruger (RGR) reported that sales jumped by a third, to $161.4 million, in the quarter ended Oct. 1 compared with the same period last year. Earnings rose 66%. The company's stock rose 2% in early trading Wednesday.
The company said sales are up across the industry, based on FBI data on background checks, which tend to rise and fall along with sales.
Sales were "likely bolstered by the political campaign for next week's election," Chris Killoy, the Sturm, Ruger... (GunPolicy.org)
Sudden Spike in US Gun Sales Down to 'Fear of Clinton Victory'
2 November 2016
Independent (UK)
One of the biggest manufacturers of hand guns and assault rifles in the United States is reporting soaring sales in the run-up to the presidential election as enthusiasts fear that a Hillary Clinton victory over Donald Trump could lead to restrictive new gun-control measures.
Sturm, Ruger, maker of AR-type assault rifles as well as an array of other rifles and pistols, said in an earnings call that sales rose by one third, to $161.4 million, in the quarter that ended 1... (GunPolicy.org)
Clinton #2 Tim Caine: US Gun Violence Is a Public Health Crisis
1 November 2016
Time (USA)
In every elected office I have held over the past 20 years, gun violence has been a serious issue. When I was mayor of Richmond, Virginia, our city had one of the highest homicide rates in the country. When I was governor, our commonwealth experienced the worst campus shooting in U.S. history. And as I serve in the U.S. Senate and our country falls victim to one mass shooting after another, Congress has yet to pass any commonsense gun safety legislation. Like many... (GunPolicy.org)
Stricter Gun Control is America Is Inevitable, Says Researcher
1 November 2016
Guns (US)
It doesn't matter which candidate is elected the next leader of the free world next Tuesday, stricter gun control is inevitable — at least according to one onlooker.
Philip Alpers is the founding director of GunPolicy.org, an organization devoted to publishing facts and figures on gun violence and gun control. It's hosted by the Sydney School of Public Health at the University of Sydney in Australia. Alpers says it doesn't matter what Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump... (GunPolicy.org)
A Clever, Voluntary Waiting Term to Curb Gun Suicides - Study
31 October 2016
Forbes (USA)
What if I told you there was an easy way to save thousands of U.S. citizens from death each year that was entirely voluntary and would not infringe on Second Amendment rights? Earlier this month, researchers at the University of Alabama-Birmingham published the feasibility of such an approach to address this public health problem.
The problem? Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. The U.S. experienced 42,773 suicide deaths in 2014, the most... (GunPolicy.org)
Too Bad, NRA: Even Your Members Want Background Checks
31 October 2016
Las Vegas Sun (Nevada), Editorial
When you see a political ad that opens with a burly guy cleaning a pistol with a rack of rifles in the background, you'd be excused if you braced yourself for yet another blast of NRA paranoia.
The Second Amendment is under fire! Don't let the government infringe on your rights by _________ (fill in the blank with any action aimed at reducing gun violence, regardless of how pragmatic it might be.)
We've heard the NRA's over-the-top rhetoric for years, and the result... (GunPolicy.org)
Four Election Day Ballots to Advance Gun Control in US States
31 October 2016
Christian Science Monitor
Voters in four states will decide on Election Day whether to enact more stringent firearms laws, as gun control activists outspend gun rights groups in an aggressive policy-shaping strategy that some have likened to the nationwide push for same-sex marriage.
Unlike past elections, there are no state initiatives to expand gun rights anywhere in the United States. The only ballot measures are designed to keep firearms away from people deemed dangerous in Maine, Nevada,... (GunPolicy.org)
Trump or Clinton, Stricter Gun Control Is Inevitable in America
31 October 2016
CNN, Opinion
It's impossible to run for President without having a firm position on gun control. For every candidate in every election campaign, it inevitably becomes a dividing line.
And 2016 is no different. At various stages, Donald Trump has held differing positions on the matter, but has been sufficiently in favor of protecting the second amendment to secure the support of the NRA. Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton, while claiming to respect the second amendment, has made clear that... (GunPolicy.org)
4 US States to Weigh Tougher Gun Control in Nov. 8 Election
30 October 2016
Fortune (USA), Associated Press
The last time voters in Maine were asked about gun rights, they easily passed a constitutional amendment creating a right to own firearms that "shall never be questioned."
Three decades later, the state known for its hunting tradition will vote on whether to tighten restrictions on gun sales and transfers.
Maine is one of four states, along with California, Nevada and Washington, where voters will decide Nov. 8 whether to enact tougher firearms laws. In a change from... (GunPolicy.org)
What Conservatives Get Right About Guns - Guardian US Expert
28 October 2016
GQ (US)
I grew up in Connecticut, firmly on one side of the gun culture war. My parents thought it was wrong even to let kids play with toy guns. But I made a vow to myself when I started covering this debate: I would not be one one of those New York City journalists who writes ignorant, condescending stories about "gun nuts."
As it expanded into the United States, the liberal British newspaper The Guardian did something most media outlets haven't done: it assigned a reporter... (GunPolicy.org)
NYT Book Review: 'Another Day in the [Gun] Death of America'
27 October 2016
New York Times, Book review
In 2013, between the wee hours of Nov. 23 and the wee hours of Nov. 24, 10 American children and teenagers were killed by guns. The youngest, Jaiden Dixon, was 9, shot by the deranged father of his eldest brother. The oldest, Kenneth Mills-Tucker, was 19, shot in a car under circumstances that are still unclear.
The number of fatalities that day exceeded the national daily average of 6.75. Then again, averages are almost always misleading — murders of this kind tend... (GunPolicy.org)
NY Police Destroy Thousands of Crime Guns: NRA Protest [ES]
26 October 2016
El Diario (US)
[Translated summary: The New York Police Department announced a plan to melt and recycle thousands of firearms seized from crime. Chief of Department Carlos Gomez says that each gun represents a potential victim. In 2015, they destroyed around 7,000. The NRA protested, arguing that seized firearms should be resold on the legal market and that police could use the money for new equipment.]
Este miércoles el comisionado del Departamento de Policía de Nueva York... (GunPolicy.org)
In a Lifetime, 99.9% of Americans Will Know a Shooting Victim
26 October 2016
Quartz (US)
Victims of gun violence are not just the people in direct range of bullets. They're also those on the periphery.
Almost every single American—99.85%—will know at least one victim of gun violence during his or her lifetime, a recent analysis in the journal Preventive Medicine estimates.
Around 30,000 gun-related deaths and 80,000 non-fatal injuries occur annually in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A study published in the... (GunPolicy.org)
NYPD Has Seized 15,000 Crime Guns in New York Since 2013
26 October 2016
New York Post
This mountain of nearly 2,000 guns was amassed by the NYPD during a collection of street stops, gang takedowns, search warrants and other forms of old-fashioned police work.
The heaving pile of pistols, rifles and shotguns that cops showed off Wednesday at One Police Plaza represents just a fraction of the approximately 15,500 firearms seized or confiscated since 2013.
"To my left is obviously a lot of guns," Police Commissioner James O'Neill said at a press... (GunPolicy.org)
Spain Licences 8,000 Civilians to Carry Hidden Handguns
25 October 2016
El País (Colombia)
Sitting on a terrace having breakfast, Fernando glances around, and then opens his jacket to reveal a small pistol in a brown leather holster. It is a Glock 9mm and he carries it for protection. A jeweler by trade, he was the target of a number of violent attacks several years ago, and was subsequently declared "at risk" and issued a B license by Spanish police – a license that allows him to carry a firearm for self-defense.
Fernando is not particularly pleased to be... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Makers Ban New Handgun Sales in 'Too Strict' California
24 October 2016
LA Times, Editorial
When someone shoots up a neighborhood with a semiautomatic weapon, the shooter usually leaves evidence behind — not only the bullets fired, but also the spent casings ejected from the gun as a fresh round loads. Ballistics experts can match distinctive marks the firing process leaves on the bullets and the casings against fresh samples fired from a gun that investigators believe may have been used in the crime. But first, of course, they must have the gun.
But... (GunPolicy.org)
Australia Justice Minister Said Consulting Only With Gun Lobby
24 October 2016
Guardian
A group of 30 domestic violence groups, gun control advocates, politicians and prominent Australians has criticised the federal justice minister, Michael Keenan, for holding "one-sided" meetings in 2015 with the firearms lobby on changes to Australia's gun laws.
Minutes from the firearms reference industry group obtained by Guardian Australia show Keenan told firearms lobby groups in a private meeting in September 2015 that the government wanted to cut "red tape" from... (GunPolicy.org)
California on Brink of US Election Upset Over Gun Control
24 October 2016
Los Angeles Times
Proposition 63 would enact the toughest gun controls in the United States. But it also would do something else: represent an astonishing historical milestone.
And if passed as expected, the ballot measure would illustrate a textbook example of how public policy can be radically changed in a democracy laden with competing checks and balances.
How is that? Through the long, slow process of taking incremental steps over decades. By pushing hard and steadily, but with... (GunPolicy.org)
Trump Supporters Plan to Flaunt Their Guns at Polling Booths
21 October 2016
The Trace (USA)
Eddie Fulmer will cast his ballot for Donald Trump on Election Day with a .45-caliber pistol visibly strapped to his hip. Though he thinks voter fraud is a problem, Fulmer will not be monitoring the polls, and he doesn't believe that other voters in his pocket of Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, will recoil at the sight of his gun.
"People are going to vote just like they walk around in daily life," said Fulmer, president of the gun rights group BamaCarry. "It may seem... (GunPolicy.org)
Australian Gun Lobby, Leyonhjelm Shot Themselves in the Foot
21 October 2016
The New Daily (Australia)
Adler Arms Corp, the Turkish manufacturer of the A110 lever-action rapid-fire 12 gauge shotgun, will not legally be entitled to distribute its product to Australian consumers for the indefinite future.
After assembled state and Commonwealth ministers failed to reach consensus on Friday about an appropriate risk assessed classification for the Adler, it appears the gun lobby, in particular Liberal Democrat cross bench Senator David Leyonhjelm has shot itself in the... (GunPolicy.org)
Europe's Pro-gun Lobbies Dilute Planned EU Gun Control Law
21 October 2016
Deutsche Welle
The European Commission's attempts to ban the most dangerous semi-automatic weapons, such as AK-47 assault rifles, are being watered down thanks to pressure from a pan-European alliance of gun associations, according to documents leaked to "Der Spiegel" magazine.
The Commission's proposal, drawn up in the wake of last year's terrorist attacks at the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris, is due to be finalized over the coming weeks by the European Parliament, the Commission,... (GunPolicy.org)
US 'National Dialogue Has Changed' on Guns - 130 of the Worst
21 October 2016
New York Times
John R. Houser was dangerously mentally ill, too ill to carry a gun. Of that, there is little doubt.
Over 16 years, Mr. Houser, 59, had been charged with hiring a man to burn down a lawyer's office and named in a domestic violence complaint. In 2008, after Mr. Houser threatened to kill his daughter's fiancé, a judge issued a temporary restraining order and ordered him hospitalized for psychiatric evaluation. In 2014, he threatened to shoot law enforcement officers who... (GunPolicy.org)
Australia Gun Laws: Which Way Will We Go? - Guardian OpEd
21 October 2016
Guardian, Opinion
On Friday, the state police ministers will meet to finalise the review of the National Firearms Agreement (NFA) including the fate of the Adler A110 lever-action shotgun.
The importance of this meeting should not be underestimated. In summary, the ministers are deciding the future direction of Australia's gun laws. A future that could see the demise of Australia's strong gun laws and the continual rise of the pro-gun lobby.
One issue which the states and commonwealth... (GunPolicy.org)
German Arms Maker to Release Second Smart Gun in US
20 October 2016
Computer World (Singapore)
German firearms manufacturer Armatix LLC is planning to release its second smart gun in the U.S. next year after sales of its first model -- the .22 caliber iP1 -- were quashed by pressure from some gun owners and gun rights advocates who saw it as a threat to Second Amendment freedoms.
Unlike the iP1, which used RFID technology, the new iP9 9mm semi-automatic pistol will have a fingerprint reader. The iP9 will be available in mid-2017, according to Wolfgang Tweraser,... (GunPolicy.org)
Adler Shotgun Explainer: Lever Actions and the Law in Australia
19 October 2016
Guardian
Gun control in Australia has been thrust into the political spotlight once again as reports emerge that Malcolm Turnbull may be willing to consider relaxing Australia's firearms laws.
The reports appear to focus on softening restrictions on lever-action shotguns in exchange for support from the Liberal Democrat senator David Leyonhjelm to pass industrial relations legislation.
National firearms laws created after the Port Arthur massacre in 1996 set out how weapons... (GunPolicy.org)
Why US Gun-Control Movement Fails: Focus on Wrong Victims
18 October 2016
Nation (USA)
On the evening of November 22, 2013, as the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination drew to a close, Kenneth Mills Tucker, 19, sent a tweet letting the world know his plans for the night: "Out with the gang Dooney Wayne n Rell what's going on tonight. My last weekend being a teenager." It was to be Kenneth's last weekend ever.
Shortly after 3 am on November 23, a residential area of northwest Indianapolis crackled with gunfire from an automatic... (GunPolicy.org)
'Guns Don't Kill People; Toddlers Kill People' - Brady US TV Ad
17 October 2016
USA Today
In a nation where someone utters the phrase "guns don't kill people, people do" in nearly every gun debate, a new gun control campaign agrees and goes a step further: It's not just people that kill people, but toddlers.
The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence released a satirical video Monday calling for the deportation of toddlers, who obtained firearms and shot people on a weekly basis in 2015. The ad begins with a barrage of images showing children holding... (GunPolicy.org)
At Least One American Child Dies by Gunshot Every Other Day
14 October 2016
USA Today, Associated Press
Hours earlier, he was a happy 4-year-old who loved Ironman and the Hulk and all the Avengers. Now, as Bryson Mees-Hernandez approached death in a Houston hospital room, his brain swelling through the bullet hole in his face, his mother assured the boy it was OK to die.
"When you are on the other side," his mother, Crystal Mees, recalls telling him, "you are going to see Mommy cry a lot. It's not because she's mad. It's because she misses you."
And this: "It's not your... (GunPolicy.org)
US Agency Badly Undercounts Children Killed with Guns [ES]
14 October 2016
Euronews (France)
[Translated Summary: The real number of children killed with guns is underestimated in US official statistics. According to research, between January, 2014 and June this year, there have been 326 deaths by accidental shooting related to children. Yet only 74 were documented by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the agency responsible for keeping count.]
Es la cara oculta de la proliferación de armas de fuego en Estados Unidos: el numero real de niños muertos por... (GunPolicy.org)
326 US Children Unintentionally Shot, Killed in 2014-2016 [FR]
14 October 2016
Euro News
[Translated summary: In the US, between January 2014 and June 2016, there have been 326 fatal, but unintentional shootings and thousands of gun injury incidents involving children, according to a research by USA Today and the Associated Press. In 2014 the Centers for Disease Control only found 74 of those.]
C'est la face cachée du boom inédit du marché des armes à feu aux Etats-Unis : le nombre réel de morts par balle impliquant des enfants.
Bryson... (GunPolicy.org)
Amazingly, There Is No US Federal Law Against Gun Trafficking
13 October 2016
Mother Jones (USA)
Rep. Caroline Maloney (D-N.Y.) first learned that there is no federal law against gun trafficking at, of all places, a Fast and Furious hearing. In June 2011, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform convened to scrutinize the gunrunning sting known as Fast and Furious, which had flown off the rails when agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) allowed assault weapons to land in the hands of Mexican drug cartels. Much of... (GunPolicy.org)
Confronting Gun Violence in America - New Book, Good Reviews
13 October 2016
Palgrave Macmillan, Author Thomas Gabor, Media release
Each year, over 100,000 Americans are killed or seriously injured by gunfire. This book critically examines the link between guns and violence and suggests a bold national strategy to reduce gun violence in the United States.
Criminologist and international consultant Thomas Gabor has been conducting research on gun violence for 25 years. The book presents the most current data and trends on gun violence and mass shootings, including recent attacks in Orlando and... (GunPolicy.org)
Higher Rates of Gun Death in US States with Weaker Gun Laws
12 October 2016
Mother Jones (USA)
The rates of gun violence in the 10 states with the weakest gun laws are more than three times higher than those in the 10 states with the strongest gun laws. That's one of the major findings of a new report from the Center for American Progress (CAP) that analyzes 10 indicators of firearm violence—including suicide, murder, fatal gun accidents, and mass shootings—in all 50 states and finds a "strong" correlation between gun violence and weak gun laws.
The states... (GunPolicy.org)
Ballot Looms to Reduce Gun Death Risk in Washington State
11 October 2016
Kiro7 (Seattle)
The citizen sponsor of Washington state ballot Initiative 1491 believes her son and daughter would still be alive if "extreme-risk protection orders" had been legal two years ago.
When Marilyn Balcerak's mentally ill son became increasingly violent and potentially suicidal, she repeatedly asked the police how she could keep guns out of his hands. She was told she could get a restraining order or wait until he committed a felony, which would make it illegal to buy a... (GunPolicy.org)
US Groups Push New Gun Control Evidence, Election Sways
11 October 2016
New York Times
With guns emerging as a major flash point in the presidential race and campaigns nationwide, gun-control advocates are spending tens of millions of dollars on a central message: Stronger firearms laws can reduce gun violence.
Although the National Rifle Association has long rejected that assertion, a growing body of evidence from academics, advocacy groups and others supports the link between gun restrictions and a reduction in violence.
The latest analysis comes out... (GunPolicy.org)
In Two Years, 295 US Children Under 13 Have Shot Someone
10 October 2016
The Trace (USA)
Christa Engles was shot in the head in November, 2014 by her 3-year-old son while changing her baby's diaper in her Tulsa, Oklahoma home. The boy had found the 9mm semiautomatic handgun on a living room table.
Two months later, in Elmo, Missouri, five-year-old Corbin Wiederholt used a .22-caliber handgun he picked up off the headboard of the grandfather's bed to shoot and kill his nine-month-old brother.
Not long after that, at a home in LeBleu Settlement, Louisiana,... (GunPolicy.org)
Most Americans Support Common-Sense Gun Regulation - NYT
10 October 2016
New York Times, Editorial
The vast majority of Americans — about nine in 10 — support reasonable, common-sense gun regulations. The numbers are only slightly lower among gun owners and members of the National Rifle Association. And yet, year after year, lawmakers in Congress and in statehouses across the country, all beholden to the gun lobby, act as if the opposite were true.
They reject even mild, sensible laws — such as background checks and bans on gun ownership by domestic abusers or... (GunPolicy.org)
US NRA Spends Near Record Millions to Support Trump
7 October 2016
Reuters
The National Rifle Association is on track for record spending this year on U.S. political campaigns, including Missouri's U.S. Senate race where a gun-owning Democrat is waging a tough fight against an incumbent Republican backed by the gun rights group.
Democrat Jason Kander, an Afghanistan war veteran, is running just 2.5 percentage points behind Republican U.S. Senator Roy Blunt in opinion polls in Missouri, despite the NRA's expenditure of $1.8 million so far... (GunPolicy.org)
A British Journalist Grapples With US Gun Culture - The Atlantic
6 October 2016
Atlantic (USA)
In 2003, the British journalist Gary Younge moved from a country with roughly seven firearms per 100 people to a country with around 101 firearms per 100 people, from a country with an annual rate of .04 gun homicides per 100,000 people to a country with an annual rate of 3.43 gun homicides per 100,000 people, and from a country with strict gun laws and unarmed police to a country with neither. Younge, who writes for The Guardian, had relocated to the United States.... (GunPolicy.org)
Four Key US States Will Vote Pro/Con Stricter Gun Control
6 October 2016
USA Today
WASHINGTON — Voters in four states will decide on proposed gun restrictions next month, as gun-safety proponents, often rebuffed by Congress and state officials, increasingly turn to ballot initiatives to push passage of stricter firearms laws.
Voters in Maine and Nevada will decide whether to expand background checks for gun buyers. In Washington state, where activists passed a background-check measure two years ago, voters will decide whether judges can temporarily... (GunPolicy.org)
US Women Think They're Feminists If They Own Guns [FR]
5 October 2016
TV5 Monde (France)
[Translated summary: More American women are buying one or several firearms and seeing their ownership as a symbol of emancipation. Dealers say that 20% of their sales are to women, while a recent poll by the National Shooting Sport Foundation saw an increase of 15% between 2010 and 2013. The number of women who practice sport shooting increased from 1.8 to 3.3 million in the last 15 years.]
Mères de famille, vendeuses d'armes à feu et d'accessoires spécialisés,... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gunsmiths Want Dept of State Out of Arms Export Controls
4 October 2016
Guns
A bipartisan group of lawmakers have debuted a proposal that would transfer export oversight for most gunsmiths from the State Department in an effort to curb a possible $2,250 annual fee to stay in operation.
The bicameral bill, introduced on Sept. 27 by lawmakers that include two Texas Democrats as House sponsors, would transfer regulatory responsibility on the export of non-military firearms to the U.S. Department of Commerce and comes in response to a change by the... (GunPolicy.org)
US Justice Dept Report Flags Gun Trade Weakness [ES]
28 September 2016
Noticias RCN (Colombia), Report
[Translated Summary: According to a report by the US Justice Department, there are flaws in the way authorities check the background of people who want to purchase a firearm. For example, if the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the FBI disagree on whether a person should be able to acquire a firearm, the ATF can authorize the purchase disregarding FBI's opinion.]
El reporte señala que hay falencias en la manera en la que las autoridades... (GunPolicy.org)
Australia Prepares New Gun Amnesty as City Shootings Rise
26 September 2016
Nikkei Asian Review
SYDNEY -- A crazed gunman shot dead 35 people at Port Arthur, a historic tourist site in the Australian island state of Tasmania in April 1996, prompting then-Prime Minister John Howard to outlaw military-style assault weapons and introduce a gun buyback scheme as part of a tough set of national firearm laws.
Australia's gun homicide and suicide rates have both fallen markedly in the intervening 20 years and there have been no mass shootings (defined as five or more... (GunPolicy.org)
Equality Florida Endorses Gun Policies Reforms
25 September 2016
LGBT Weekly
Equality Florida made a significant policy announcement to formally endorse common sense gun violence prevention policies in response to the hate-fueled attack in Orlando this past June, targeting the LGBTQ community at Pulse nightclub's Latin night.
The announcement includes a position paper detailing the deep history of hate violence against the LGBTQ people and Equality Florida's desire to partner with other marginalized communities to make all of our families... (GunPolicy.org)
Missouri Gun Law Eliminates Safeguards for Hidden Handguns
23 September 2016
Washington Post, Editorial
Most States require a person who wants to legally carry a concealed handgun in public to acquire a permit and, in most cases, receive firearms training. Giving law enforcement a say in who can carry guns in America's cities and neighborhoods, while ensuring they are properly trained, just makes sense. Unfortunately, that commodity is in short supply in Missouri, where lawmakers buckled to pressure from the national gun lobby and overrode the governor's veto of a bill... (GunPolicy.org)
Guns Are Stolen in America As Often As Once Every Minute
21 September 2016
The Trace (USA)
ATLANTA — Landen Boyd parked his Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck at a construction site south of downtown Atlanta and went to work, leaving his black Smith & Wesson 9mm in a case underneath the center console.
It was the fall of 2006, and Boyd, a 37-year-old construction superintendent, was overseeing the development of an apartment complex across the train tracks from Mechanicsville, a high-crime neighborhood. When noon came, Boyd hitched a ride to eat lunch with... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Owners Lose Up to 60,000 Firearms a Year to Thieves
21 September 2016
Guardian
Landen Boyd parked his Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck at a construction site south of downtown Atlanta and went to work, leaving his black Smith & Wesson 9mm in a case underneath the center console.
While Boyd was eating lunch at a nearby rib joint, someone chucked a brick through his truck's back window, crawled inside, grabbed his weapon, and fled.
The Smith & Wesson vanished into Atlanta's underworld for more than two years. The handgun resurfaced when police... (GunPolicy.org)
The Well-trained 'Good Guy With a Gun' is Still a Rarity
21 September 2016
Bloomberg (USA), Editorial
The National Rifle Association likes to say that "the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is with a good guy with a gun." This vaporous aphorism, first intoned by NRA leader Wayne LaPierre four years ago, made an appearance this week on the NRA's Twitter feed -- but it doesn't quite mean what the NRA thinks.
In an attack at a Minnesota mall last weekend, a knife-wielding assailant was shot dead by a former police chief named Jason Falconer. According to a biography... (GunPolicy.org)
More US Urban Women Now Own Handguns for Protection
21 September 2016
Guardian
She only owns a handgun. She's more likely than male gun owners to live in an urban area, and less likely to have grown up in a gun-friendly household.
And regardless of how many and what types of guns she owns, she's more likely to report owning firearms for protection than men.
This is the portrait of the American female gun owner, as depicted by the most definitive survey of US gun ownership in two decades. While gun ownership has long been dominated by men in the... (GunPolicy.org)
Has Australia Become Complacent About Gun Control?
21 September 2016
Huffington Post (Australia)
It's been 20 years since the Port Arthur massacre, and the landmark gun control legislation introduced by the Howard government soon after. Two decades on from the buy back scheme which saw 700,000 guns taken off streets and destroyed, the Australian Greens have named senator Lee Rhiannon as their new gun control spokesperson. It is a new portfolio for the party, and Rhiannon herself said she wasn't sure if any other party had named a specific gun control portfolio... (GunPolicy.org)
Men Use Guns to Murder Most of 1,600 US Women Each Year
20 September 2016
Violence Policy Center (Washington, DC), Media release
Washington, DC — More than 1,600 women were murdered by men in 2014 and the most common weapon used was a gun, according to the new Violence Policy Center (VPC) study When Men Murder Women: An Analysis of 2014 Homicide Data.
This annual VPC report is being released in advance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October. The study uses 2014 data, the most recent year for which information is available.
The study also ranks the states on the rate of women murdered... (GunPolicy.org)
Half America's 265m Guns Are Owned by 3% of the People [FR]
19 September 2016
Les Echos (France)
[Translated summary: A study from Harvard and Northeastern universities shows that there are 265 million firearms in America and that 130 million of them are in the hands of only 3% of the population. This group of 'super owners' has an average of 17 firearms each. The study also confirms that owners are mostly white, conservative men.]
Une étude réalisée par les universités d'Harvard et Northeastern montre qu'une grande partie des armes à feu est concentrée... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Industry Finally Faces its Huge Gun Suicide Problem
17 September 2016
Detroit News
In what some see as an unlikely move, the gun industry is preparing to get behind a suicide-prevention push. The unlikely part, just to be clear, is that the industry makes products that enable almost half of all suicides in America.
Steve Sanetti, the president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the industry's trade group, sees nothing at all surprising about gun and ammunition makers trying to make a dent in the grim count. "We've been looking at this issue... (GunPolicy.org)
Obama Hopes to Ratify Arms Trade Treaty Before Leaving Office
13 September 2016
Breitbart (USA)
The ATT has been an on again off again project of the Obama administration during both terms of his presidency, particularly his first term.
In 2013 the NRA warned: "This treaty threatens individual firearm ownership with an invasive registration scheme [and is full of regulations and requirements that are] blatant attacks on the constitutional rights of every law-abiding American." The treaty does this, in part, by "[urging] record keeping of end users, directing... (GunPolicy.org)
Pink Pistols: Gun-Toting Gay Americans, Trained and Armed
12 September 2016
Philadelphia Inquirer
Gwen Patton does not carry a gun specifically because she is a lesbian. She carries a gun because she believes random evil can put its hand on you at any moment - and gay people face additional danger.
"Yeah, because someone mugs you on the street, they want your wallet, they want your watch, they want money. A woman might also face a threat of rape," she says. "Another level is when they don't like you for what you are. There's a quantum leap in danger."
That's why... (GunPolicy.org)
Australian Gun Owners Shoot Effigy of Gun Control Activist
12 September 2016
ABC News (Australia)
Police have been asked to investigate footage of a man shooting and setting alight an effigy of Gun Control Australia leader Sam Lee.
The YouTube video shows two gun enthusiasts customising and demonstrating a controversial Adler lever action shotgun.
The video then cuts to a blonde doll, dubbed "Sham Leigh from Fun Control Australia".
The doll is shot multiple times until the head blows apart, which is then replayed in slow motion. The effigy is then set... (GunPolicy.org)
Illness, Sudden Death: Confessions of a Gun Range Worker
9 September 2016
Mother Jones (USA)
Editor's note: Americans today aren't just stockpiling guns in record numbers; they are also shooting them at upward of 2,100 gun ranges across the country. In February, the pseudonymous author of this piece—a former employee at a gun range in Orange County, California—contacted Mother Jones reporter Josh Harkinson, who interviewed the author and corroborated his account (as told to Harkinson below) through official documents, news reports, and interviews with two... (GunPolicy.org)
NRA-Backed Taboo on Tracing US Gun Sales Must Change
8 September 2016
Los Angeles Times, Editorial
When police recover a gun from a crime scene, they usually check with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to determine the weapon's history — who made it, who bought it from whom and when. But because of ludicrous restrictions that Congress has placed on the agency, a gun trace that should take minutes instead takes days, wasting precious time and millions of taxpayer dollars.
The problem is rooted in the gun lobby's fear that the federal... (GunPolicy.org)
Why US Gun Tracing Center Is Not Allowed Computers [ES]
7 September 2016
Actualidad RT
[Translated summary: A US law makes sure that the government can't create a searchable database of all firearm owners. According to the NRA, registering all the firearms in a single place will allow the government to easily confiscate them. Thus, the National Tracing Center has to look for records manually, and a search that could take seconds, takes more than a week.]
A diferencia de lo que muestran las películas, en EE.UU. no existe ningún sistema íntegro de... (GunPolicy.org)
4,500 Gun Violence Deaths While US Congress Was on Break
6 September 2016
Fusion (USA)
As America's elected representatives returned from their nearly two-month-long summer break on Tuesday, they were met with a stark number awaiting their arrival:
4,500.
That's how many people the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence says were killed by firearms since Congress broke for its summer recess on July 18.
"Congress is in for a rude awakening today if they thought seven weeks of vacation would wipe the slate clean," Dan Gross, President of the Brady... (GunPolicy.org)
What Trump Vs. Clinton Means for US Gun Control - Opinion
5 September 2016
Huffington Post (USA), Opinion
For the first time since 2000, the Presidential election promises to be pivotal for the politics of gun control. Both for supporters of stronger gun laws, and for "gun rights" partisans, the stakes could not be higher.
It was not long ago that the political death of gun control was accepted as an incontestible truth by pundits of every ideological stripe. For the Democratic Party, although much was made of the alleged impact of the gun issue on the Gingrich takeover of... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Dealers, Health Experts Combine to Curb Gun Suicide
3 September 2016
Christian Science Monitor
HOOKSETT — As the longtime owner of a gun store, Ralph Demicco is passionate about his firearms. At the modest ranch house he built himself outside this rural New Hampshire town, he keeps a collection of rifles, shotguns, pistols, and antique weaponry, including two cast-iron cannons that he stores in the barn beneath an oval wooden wall plaque inscribed with the Second Amendment.
On special occasions, he wheels out his beloved cannons – replicas of Dutch and... (GunPolicy.org)
Main US Gun Tracing Centre Deliberately Buried in Bureaucracy
1 September 2016
Mother Jones (USA)
Two agents with suits and trim haircuts lean against a cubicle wall in the cavernous red-brick building that houses the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' National Tracing Center in Martinsburg, West Virginia. They're laughing about one of the gun lobby's favorite myths: the notion that the government has a database with the names of every gun owner in America, and that one day, maybe very soon, it will sweep across the country to confiscate... (GunPolicy.org)
Medical Marijuana Users Banned from Buying Guns in US [ES]
1 September 2016
San Diego Red (USA)
[Translated summary: After a woman was denied a gun purchase because she had a medical marijuana card, a Federal Appeal Court agreed that the the drug 'increases the risk of irrational or unpredictable behavior' and should not be associated with the use of guns. Some think that the prohibition violates the Second Amendment.]
Después del caso de una mujer en Nevada a la que se le negó la venta de una pistola para defensa propia por tener una tarjeta para marihuana... (GunPolicy.org)
Many Stringest Tests Required to Own a Firearm in Japan
31 August 2016
The Blaze (USA)
The right to "keep and bear arms" in America is expected to be a hot topic for both Republicans and Democrats leading up to the election, as the debate rages between those who see America as a great place to own a gun and those who believe we are a country with too many guns and seek to get rid of the Second Amendment.
But what about gun rights other countries?
Last weekend, Fareed Zakaria's "Global Public Square" on CNN spent an entire hour sharing "lessons" about... (GunPolicy.org)
Legal Marijuana Users Can't Buy Guns, Says US Federal Court
31 August 2016
New York Times, Associated Press
A federal ban on the sale of guns to medical marijuana card holders does not violate the Second Amendment, a federal appeals court said Wednesday.
The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals applies to the nine Western states that fall under the court's jurisdiction, including California, Washington and Oregon.
It came in a lawsuit filed by S. Rowan Wilson, a Nevada woman who said she tried to buy a firearm for self-defense in 2011 after obtaining a medical... (GunPolicy.org)
California Funds Major Effort to Understand US Gun Violence
31 August 2016
NY Mag (USA)
Despite the fact that the United States has a very, very high rate of gun deaths compared to other developed countries, we actually know very little about the public-health threat posed by firearms. That's because Congress, working closely with the NRA, passed legislation in the 1990s barring the Centers for Disease control from spending money on any research that could be seen as pro-gun-control, and the CDC has interpreted this ban in a broad manner — the NRA's... (GunPolicy.org)
Claims of the NRA's Favorite Social Scientist, Debunked
30 August 2016
Vox (USA)
The War Against Guns: Arming Yourself Against Gun Control Lies by John Lott is well on its way to ascending into the pantheon of pro-gun literature. A parade of conservative heavyweights has lavished praise on the book since its publication this month, among them Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Newt Gingrich, Grover Norquist, Ann Coulter, and Sean Hannity. Cruz opined that "the Second Amendment has no better defender than John Lott," adding that with this book, Lott "has done... (GunPolicy.org)
Admirable People at US Federal Bureau of Way Too Many Guns
30 August 2016
GQ (USA)
Say there's a murder. Blood everywhere, a dead guy on the floor. The cops come in with their yellow tape, chalk line, the little booties, cameras, swabs, the fingerprint dust. One of them finds a gun on the floor. The gun! He lifts it with his pinkie, examines it, takes note of the serial number. Back at the station, they run a trace on the gun. A name pops up. It's the wife! Or: It's the business partner! It's somebody's gun, and this is so exciting because now they... (GunPolicy.org)
The First-ever State-funded US Gun Violence Research Centre
30 August 2016
Sacramento Bee (California)
The UC Davis Medical Center will house the nation's first state-funded firearm violence research center, an effort backed by health organizations and opposed by gun rights advocates.
The University of California Firearm Violence Research Center will be under the direction of Garen Wintemute, an emergency room physician, professor, researcher and expert on firearm violence. The Sacramento-based center will build on his work with the UC Davis Violence Prevention Research... (GunPolicy.org)
Professors, Students' Opinions About Guns on Campus - NYT
27 August 2016
New York Times
As classes began here at the University of Texas this past week amid a new law allowing concealed handguns on college campuses in the state, an accounting student quietly strapped on a pistol and headed to class.
A pre-med sophomore joined a raucous protest against the law.
A professor who had sued to stop the law resigned herself to teaching with handguns in the classroom.
And the college president sought out ways to safeguard the campus culture that he cherished... (GunPolicy.org)
Australia: 'Massacre Tax' Suggested to Curb US Gun Exports
26 August 2016
Stuff (New Zealand)
Australia's former deputy prime minister, Tim Fischer, has proposed what is surely a world-first plan for shooting down the gun-loving US Republican candidate for president, Donald Trump: a "massacre tax" on US gun exports.
In doing so, Fischer has also come out all guns blazing against what he calls the "lethal poison" flowing to Australia from US weapons manufacturers with the assistance of the American gun lobby and what he calls dysfunctional and corrupted US... (GunPolicy.org)
America's Nonsensical, Non-Searchable Gun Tracing System
24 August 2016
The Trace (USA)
The trace starts with a call or fax to the National Trace Center in Martinsburg, West Virginia. A police department has recovered a gun at a crime scene that was bought at a dealer that has since gone out of business. The inquiring officer turns to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to find out who purchased it, and when.
Federally licensed gun dealers are required to submit sales records to the ATF when they close up shop. The ATF has acquired a... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Control Group Endorses Two Republican Senators
22 August 2016
Time (USA)
The gun control group founded by Gabby Giffords and her husband, Mark Kelly, has endorsed two Republican Senators in tough reelection fights as it seeks to expand its outreach.
In an op-ed on CNN Monday, Americans for Responsible Solutions backed Sens. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Mark Kirk of Illinois, who are both facing tough re-election races in a year in which Democrats hope to regain control of the Senate.
The two sitting Senators voted in favor of gun control... (GunPolicy.org)
German Right-Wing Group Calls for Mass Gun Ownership
20 August 2016
Express (UK)
The AFD has won growing support partly due to the European migrant crisis, which has seen more than one million arrive in the country over the past year.
The chairwoman for the party, Frauke Petry, said: "Many people are increasingly feeling unsafe. Every law-abiding citizen should be in a position to defend themselves, their family and their friends.
"We all know how long it takes until the police can get to the scene, especially in sparsely populated... (GunPolicy.org)
In 'Making a Killing,' Guns Do Slay People, Children Included
18 August 2016
New York Times
Try watching a 4-year-old recount the night when his enraged father shot the little boy's mother and grandfather in front of him. If there's a stronger word than heartbreaking, it would be apt for that story and for the others told in "Making a Killing: Guns, Greed and the N.R.A."
"The N.R.A. creates fear in order to sell more guns and make more money for gun manufacturers," says one victim of gun violence. That and other arguments in this documentary are backed up... (GunPolicy.org)
Gays Against Guns Campaign Targets US Funds, Gun Makers
15 August 2016
Guardian
Hundreds of gay activists will begin a campaign of civil disobedience and direct action against gun companies and their supporters on Monday, to demand an end to the epidemic of gun violence blighting the US.
Members of Gays Against Guns, a group formed in the wake of the massacre of 49 people at the Pulse gay nightclub in Orlando earlier this summer, said they would "no longer stand by and watch the gun industry profit from death".
Organizers of the collective, which... (GunPolicy.org)
Trump's Only Firm Remaining Ally is The NRA - NY Times
10 August 2016
New York Times
Donald J. Trump's candidacy has driven away throngs of Republican elected officials, donors and policy experts. But not the National Rifle Association.
With Mr. Trump increasingly isolated and hobbled by controversies of his own making, the powerful gun-rights group has emerged as one of his remaining stalwart allies in the Republican coalition: the institution on the right most aggressively committed to his candidacy, except for the Republican National Committee... (GunPolicy.org)
Sweden Allows Only Responsible People to Have a Gun Licence
8 August 2016
Vox (USA)
Twenty years ago, I headed to Sweden for a sabbatical year to study the country's attitudes toward hunting. As a responsible hunter, I brought my own guns — an old 12-gauge shotgun and a Remington .30-06 — because I didn't want to miss a shot or wound an animal using unfamiliar, borrowed firearms.
As a sociologist I thought that bringing my own firearms would give me some firsthand experience with European gun laws. That happened sooner than I expected.
My... (GunPolicy.org)
Smith & Wesson Gives $500,000 to Fight Assault Rifle Ban
4 August 2016
Guardian
Gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson has donated $500,000 to the US's largest gun industry trade body to help its fightback against the Massachusetts attorney general's ban on the sale of assault rifles to civilians.
Smith & Wesson, whose shares this week hit a record high on the back of increasing demand for its assault rifles and other guns, said it had donated the money to the National Shooting Sports Foundation's (NSSF) battle against "arbitrary government action that... (GunPolicy.org)
US Hidden Handgun Permits Up 215% Since 2007 - John Lott
1 August 2016
Bearing Arms
According to John R. Lott, Jr. with the Crime Prevention Research Center, the number of concealed handgun permit applications [was] 14.5 million during President Obama's administration. That's a 215% increase since 2007!
Another key finding in Lott's research follows females with firearms. According to the CPRC report's findings, "the number of women with permits has increased twice as quickly as the number of men with permits."
Evidence also "suggests that... (GunPolicy.org)
NRA Advocates for Some Black Gun Owners, But Not Others
21 July 2016
The Trace (USA)
The day after Philando Castile was shot dead by a police officer during a traffic stop, his girlfriend Diamond Reynolds spoke at a march on the Minnesota governor's mansion. Reynolds, who filmed the aftermath of the shooting, made an unusual first demand for an African-American protester decrying police violence: She insisted police treat concealed carriers with respect.
Reynolds says Castile, who held a concealed weapons permit, told the officer that pulled him over... (GunPolicy.org)
The NRA Accidentally Made a Great Case for Gun Control
19 July 2016
Nation (USA)
Cleveland —The National Rifle Association sent its top lobbyist, Chris Cox, onto the stage at the Republican National Convention on Tuesday night. Keeping with the theme of the proceedings—scary people are coming to kill you—Cox told a little parable:
Imagine a young mother at home with her baby, when a violent predator kicks the door in. He's a three-time loser who was released from prison early because some politician wanted to show their compassion. What's she... (GunPolicy.org)
US Second Amendment 'A Recipe for Police Killings'
18 July 2016
Guardian, Opinion
The tragic shootings in Baton Rouge on Sunday are yet another reminder that the second amendment, which grants Americans a constitutional right to be armed, is an extreme danger to police officers. It always was and it always will be.
The right to bear arms means that police operate in an environment in which members of the public can purchase, store and practice with weaponry similar to that of police and military. Some of this weaponry can send pieces of... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Violence and Children: US Pediatricians Take a Stand
18 July 2016
New York Times
What does it mean to consider gun violence a public health problem, especially when it comes to children?
The American Academy of Pediatrics announced the development of a new initiative last week reacting to the violence in St. Paul, Baton Rouge and Dallas, an attempt as pediatricians to find ways to protect children, adolescents and young adults.
This isn't a new issue for the academy; the existing policy on firearm injuries in children emphasizes the importance of... (GunPolicy.org)
Permits for Guns Made Easier, Quicker in the Philippines
15 July 2016
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Getting a gun permit just became easier, with the Philippine National Police reducing the number of requirements needed and streamlining the application process to shorten the wait for its release.
PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa said the 10 requirements for a license to own and possess firearms (LTOPF) have been reduced to just four: the neuro-psychiatric screening, drug test, police clearance and the RTC/MTC or NBI clearance.
"As we are streamlining the... (GunPolicy.org)
Dallas Police Hampered, Not Helped by 'Good Guys With Guns'
11 July 2016
Los Angeles Times
Remember this drivel?
"The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun."
Well, that gun lobby rubbish was again disproved in Dallas.
Twelve good guys — law enforcement men and women trained to shoot — were stopped by one bad guy. Five officers were killed and seven wounded. Two civilians also were injured before the bad guy was finally stopped by a bomb-carrying robot.
How many good guys with guns were there trying to subdue this bad... (GunPolicy.org)
51 Times More Gun-Related Deaths In USA Than In Canada
8 July 2016
National Observer (USA)
Five police officers were killed in a Dallas mass-shooting Thursday night, blocks away from where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated 53 years ago.
Twelve police officers and two civilians were shot during the attack that saw one sniper — who targeted white police — open fire on officers working a peaceful protest in response to police shootings in Minnesota and Louisiana.
In Dallas, the shooter, 25-year-old Micah Johnson, was trained in the military and... (GunPolicy.org)
Texas Professors Sue Over 'Hidden Handguns on Campus' Law
6 July 2016
Dallas Morning News (Texas)
AUSTIN — Three professors at the University of Texas at Austin have sued the state over a new law that will allow the carrying of concealed handguns on campus starting Aug. 1.
Jennifer Lynn Glass, Mia Carter and Lisa Moore filed the lawsuit Monday in federal court. They've named Attorney General Ken Paxton, UT-Austin President Greg Fenves and the nine members of the UT System Board of Regents as defendants. They noted that the law takes effect on the 50th anniversary... (GunPolicy.org)
The Deadly Mix of Guns and Domestic Violence
1 July 2016
New York Times, Editorial
It's a good thing Congress passed a law in 1996 barring people convicted of domestic violence from buying or owning guns. Today, despite horrifyingly frequent mass shootings and yearly gun deaths topping 30,000, lawmakers, nearly all of them Republican, stand in lock-step formation against even modest gun-control efforts — like preventing people suspected of terrorist ties from easily buying firearms.
Twenty years ago, in a somewhat less warped political universe,... (GunPolicy.org)
Rate of US Households Owning Guns Drops to 40-Year Low
29 June 2016
Washington Post
The percent of American households owning guns is at a near-40 year low in the latest CBS News poll released this month.
According to the survey, which was conducted among 1,001 Americans in the aftermath of the Orlando nightclub shooting, 36 percent of U.S. adults either own a firearm personally, or live with someone who does. That's the lowest rate of gun ownership in the CBS poll going back to 1978. It's down 17 points from the highest recorded rate in 1994, and... (GunPolicy.org)
Tighter Gun Laws Worked in South Africa, Says 17-year Study
27 June 2016
Rand Daily Mail (South Africa)
Fewer people are being shot dead in South Africa thanks to stricter gun legislation, according to a 17-year study drawing on mortuary data.
SA Medical Council researcher Richard Matzopoulos, writing in this month's edition of SA Medical Journal, said this is proof that gun control works.
The gun-related deaths dropped from about 9540 a year between 1997 and 2000 to 3793 around 2007, a decrease of more than 60%.
This coincided with the gradual implementation of... (GunPolicy.org)
US Supreme Court Toughens Gun Ban for Domestic Violence
27 June 2016
New York Times
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday expanded the types of domestic violence convictions that can trigger the loss of gun ownership rights in a ruling issued amid fierce debate about reducing firearms violence in America.
The justices, in a 6-2 ruling, rejected arguments that a gun-ownership prohibition should apply only to knowing or intentional, rather than reckless, conduct.
In dispute was a U.S. law passed two decades ago preventing people convicted of... (GunPolicy.org)
Why Gun Control is Out of the Question After Orlando Shooting
27 June 2016
International Post Magazine (US), Opinion
Our hearts go out to the victims who died in the Orlando Shootings on 12 June. The massacre goes down as another one of America's gun violence statistics. The attack is categorized as a terrorist act and hate crime, but the conversation has been diverted away from gun control.
The fear of terrorism heightened after 9/11 where almost 3,000 Americans died. Since that fateful day, American-Muslims have become victims of hate crimes and discrimination. Even Donald Trump... (GunPolicy.org)
US Firearm Owners Defend Right to Use AR-15 Style Guns
27 June 2016
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Karen Butler still remembers the first time she picked up an AR-15-style rifle a decade ago.
"Quite honestly, I was scared of it," she recalls.
But as soon as she fired it, she became a fan.
"You know some of these people that are fearful, it's just because they don't have knowledge," she said. "We call it furniture — it's got all the accessories on it that make it look a little intimidating. But once you shoot it you realize it's so much fun."
Butler, of... (GunPolicy.org)
Fear, Loathing and Guns: Sensory Overload at NRA Death Mall
25 June 2016
Guardian
"A frightened population is obedient."
– Hunter S Thompson
"I'm not scared about going to jail. Somebody's got to do something to knock the fear out of these negroes."
– Muhammad Ali
At the 145th National Rifle Association annual meetings and exhibits, you could see and purchase replica flintlock muskets like the kind Daniel Boone used, "wardrobe" handguns the size of a cellphone, a carriage-mounted 1883 Gatling gun, historic firearms from the Renaissance down... (GunPolicy.org)
JAMA's Article on Australia's Gun Control Fuels Controversy
24 June 2016
Medpage Today (USA)
Does Australia's gun control policy -- a government buy back of civilian-owned guns and strict laws limiting access to guns -- offer useful insights for the U.S.?
No, according Timothy Wheeler, MD, a retired Los Angeles head and neck surgeon, who played a role in Congress's decision to withhold funding for CDC studies of gun violence, who termed Australia's buyback "a full-fledged mass confiscation."
"The 1996 National Firearms Agreement's so-called 'buyback' of... (GunPolicy.org)
US Senate Advances Bipartisan Gun Control Amendment
23 June 2016
Sputnik News (Russia)
WASHINGTON — By a vote of 46-52, the Senate agreed not to table the amendment offered by Senator Susan Collins. Now the entire Senate will have to vote on her amendment.
The bill would enable US citizens and individuals with permanent residence status who are on the no-fly list to appeal to the US government for redress.
In addition, US law enforcement would be informed for a period of five years of firearm purchases by anyone who is placed on the government's watch... (GunPolicy.org)
Money Doesn't Factor in the Priority US Congressional Votes
23 June 2016
Vox (USA)
The National Rifle Association donates millions of dollars every year to Republican lawmakers in Congress. And those same Republicans line up uniformly to block proposed gun control legislation.
The implication of these two facts appears obvious: Politicians are refusing to stem the bloodshed of gun violence because they're getting what amounts to a legal bribe from lobbyists.
Indeed, this familiar refrain was widely echoed again after a 15-hour Senate filibuster to... (GunPolicy.org)
Not So Fast: Why Australia Should Still Worry About Guns
23 June 2016
Daily Life (Australia)
Not for Charlotte Bacon, who would never turn seven. Not for Ana either. Not for Madeleine Hsu. Not for Jack or Gracie. Not Jesse nor James.
God knows, nothing moved politicians to talk hopes and prayers like the 20 murdered children of Sandy Hook Elementary School but nothing moved them to make change. Nearly four years later, another mass shooting and 49 dead in Orlando.
On Monday, US senators still couldn't come together to pass any gun control measures at all.... (GunPolicy.org)
Free Handguns for 'At Risk' Americans: NRA, Smith & Wesson
22 June 2016
NRA-ILA, Media release
FAIRFAX, VA — American cities are hotbeds of crime, from gang violence to police brutality, but a major part of the problem is that the most vulnerable populations cannot afford to defend themselves. A new program from the National Rifle Association, in partnership with Smith & Wesson, seeks to change that.
Share the Safety is a revolutionary online store that will open its digital doors on July 4. Taking its cue from other "buy one, give one" retailers, customers of... (GunPolicy.org)
How Racial Prejudice Helps Drive US Opposition to Gun Control
21 June 2016
Washington Post
Last week, Sen. Chris Murphy made a small splash by filibustering on the Senate floor until, he said, Republicans agreed to allow a vote on a modest gun control measure. When the nation has debates like this, commentators often focus either on what was meant by the Second Amendment, or on who supports and who opposes such regulations, examining public opinion divisions along partisan, geographical, or other lines.
My research has identified a different factor, however,... (GunPolicy.org)
US Senate Fails to Pass Four New Gun Control Measures
20 June 2016
Guardian
The US Senate failed to advance new restrictions aimed at curtailing gun violence on Monday, as lawmakers voted down four separate measures just one week after a terrorist attack in Orlando marked the deadliest mass shooting in the nation's history.
Democrats and Republicans had put forth competing amendments to both strengthen background checks and prevent suspected terrorists from purchasing firearms. But all four bills fell short of the 60 votes needed to clear a... (GunPolicy.org)
Pink Pistols, the Pro-gun Group Arming Gay America
19 June 2016
Telegraph (UK)
Karen McCloud and her girlfriend fired round after round, the bullets hitting the human shaped silhouette down range in the head and chest.
A former soldier, Ms McCloud was a straight shot. Her hands steady, her breathing calm, she squeezed the trigger of her 9mm handgun, the hot casings falling to the floor.
"Bad people have guns, and the only people who can stop them are the good people with guns," she said, reloading her weapon. "And that's exactly what went wrong... (GunPolicy.org)
US LGBT Groups Tout Benefits of Carrying Hidden Handguns
18 June 2016
NBC News (USA)
The Pink Pistols, a national gun club for gays and lesbians, wants their community to take up arms in self defense in the wake of a deadly shooting massacre at a gay nightclub in Orlando.
Spokesperson Gwendolyn Patton, who argues that the LGBT community needs to exercise their Second Amendment rights in order to defend themselves, says the group saw membership soar from about 1,500 members before the Orlando shooting on Sunday to 3,500 on Monday.
The spike in interest... (GunPolicy.org)
California Funds Gun Research Shunned by US Congress
17 June 2016
Wired (San Francisco)
Scientists have been collecting data on car crash deaths and casualties for decades. Studies of the dangers of tobacco number in the many hundreds. But the US government has never funded a research center to study gun violence. Yesterday, the California legislature approved a budget allocating $5 million to establish the California Firearm Violence Research Center. This information really wants to be free.
What scientists don't know about the public health impact of... (GunPolicy.org)
Orlando Shooting Unlikely to Bring Major New Gun Laws - NYT
16 June 2016
New York Times
WASHINGTON — It didn't happen after a congresswoman was shot in the head at an official event. It didn't happen after 20 children were gunned down in their elementary school classrooms. It didn't happen after terrorists fired on a holiday party at an agency that provided services for people with disabilities in Southern California.
Now, after the worst mass shooting in American history, major new gun control legislation is still not likely to pass in... (GunPolicy.org)
Peak US Research Body Avoids Studying Gun-Related Deaths
16 June 2016
ABC News (USA)
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studies a variety of public health threats every year, from infectious diseases to automobile safety. But for 15 years, the CDC has avoided comprehensive research on one of the top causes of death in the U.S.: firearms.
While the CDC keeps surveillance data on gun injuries and deaths, it has not funded a study aimed at reducing harm from guns since 2001. The CDC estimates that firearms are one of the top five causes... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Control and the Effect of the US 2nd Amendment
15 June 2016
The Conversation
The Second Amendment to the Constitution is a touchstone for the many people who identify with American society's enduring affinity for firearms. And every time there is an atrocity, such as the mass shooting in Orlando, debate inevitably settles on how this part of the Constitution effectively prevents the adoption of workable gun control measures.
But ironically, the Amendment played almost no substantial part in legal or constitutional jurisprudence involving gun... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Control Getting a Fresh Look From Trump, US Republicans?
15 June 2016
Washington Post
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and some vulnerable GOP lawmakers signaled Wednesday that they are open to changing the nation's gun laws, raising the possibility that the political tide might be shifting on an issue that has sharply divided Americans for years.
This isn't the first time a mass shooting, in this case the massacre in Orlando that killed 49 people this week, has sparked a national cry for congressional action on gun availability.... (GunPolicy.org)
Six US Politicians, Leaders in Gun Violence Prevention
15 June 2016
Salon (USA)
The House of Representatives acknowledged the victims of last weekend's Orlando massacre in predictable fashion on Monday: not with discussion of why a man once on an FBI terror watchlist was able to legally purchase the guns he used to kill at least 49 people, but with a time-honored ritual that has become so commonplace as to lose all meaning: the moment of silence.
Speaker Paul Ryan called for the obligatory gesture, bowed his head for a few seconds, and then... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Violence a 'Public Health Crisis' - American Medical Assn
14 June 2016
National Public Radio (USA)
Days after the deadly mass shooting in Orlando, Fla., the American Medical Association says it is adopting a policy calling gun violence in the U.S. "a public health crisis," and it says it will actively lobby Congress to overturn 20-year-old legislation blocking research on gun violence by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"Even as America faces a crisis unrivaled in any other developed country, the Congress prohibits the CDC from conducting the very... (GunPolicy.org)
US Debate: Would an Assault Weapon Ban Make a Difference?
13 June 2016
Guardian
In preparation for what would become the deadliest mass shooting in American history, Omar Mateen bought an .223 caliber AR-15-style assault rifle and a 9mm semiautomatic pistol, law enforcement officials said.
The shooters in December's San Bernardino terror attack also used AR-15-style rifles. So did the shooters in the 2012 attacks at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, and an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
Critics call AR-15-style rifles the weapon of... (GunPolicy.org)
AR-15, the Most 'Domestic' Weapon of War in America [ES]
13 June 2016
El Mundo (Spain)
[Translated summary: After a mass shooting, fear causes Americans to acquire more and more firearms for "self-defense". Some seem even more deadly, like the AR-15, an assault rifle. It is estimated than in the last five years, civilians have bought more than 1.5 millions guns. Prices start at 500 dollars.]
Cualquier vendedor de armas en EEUU sabe que un tiroteo masivo es una buena noticia para el negocio. Y más si es la mayor matanza en la historia del país. Lejos de... (GunPolicy.org)
Assault Rifle the Weapon of Choice in US Mass Shootings
13 June 2016
Malay Mail (Kuala Lumpur)
WASHINGTON — When Omar Mateen entered an Orlando, Florida, nightclub yesterday to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in US history, he wielded a weapon that has been used in massacres from California to Connecticut: a military-inspired semi-automatic rifle.
Though so-called assault rifles account for a small fraction of the United States' 30,000 annual gun deaths, they have been used in at least 10 mass shootings since 2011, according to a database compiled by... (GunPolicy.org)
US 2nd Amendment Does Not Guarantee Hidden Handguns - Court
9 June 2016
New York Times
A federal appeals court in San Francisco ruled Thursday that the Second Amendment of the Constitution does not guarantee the right of gun owners to carry concealed weapons in public places, upholding a California law that imposes stringent conditions on who may be granted a concealed-carry permit.
The 7-to-4 ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco, overturned a decision by a three-judge panel of the same court and was a... (GunPolicy.org)
No 'Right' to Carry Hidden Handgun - US Federal Court Ruling
9 June 2016
Los Angeles Times
A federal appeals court ruling that gave gun control advocates a major victory Thursday underscored California's rising importance as a center of legal and political battles over guns.
The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decided in a 7-4 ruling that California counties may restrict permits for carrying concealed firearms in public. That decision overturned a 2014 ruling that prompted some California counties to relax their rules.
"It should not be minimized how big... (GunPolicy.org)
US Law Doesn't Guarantee Right to Hidden Handguns - Court
9 June 2016
New York Times
LOS ANGELES — A federal appeals court in San Francisco ruled Thursday that the Second Amendment of the Constitution does not guarantee the right of gun owners to carry concealed weapons in public places, upholding a California law that imposes stringent conditions on who may be granted a concealed-carry permit.
The 7-to-4 ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco, overturned a decision by a three-judge panel of the same... (GunPolicy.org)
Since 1934, US Gun Lobby Created Fear of the 'Slippery Slope'
8 June 2016
The Trace (USA)
For the first time in a decade, the firearms industry has become a primary target in the gun debate. The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton regularly hammered Bernie Sanders during the primaries over his vote for a 2005 law that grants gun manufacturers and retailers broad immunity from liability lawsuits. And the families of Sandy Hook victims are now challenging that legislation in a lawsuit against Remington, the parent company for the... (GunPolicy.org)
Pennsylvania Lawmakers Aim to Curb Gun Background Checks
7 June 2016
Guns.com
Legislation will be brought up Tuesday in the House to replace the troubled Pennsylvania Instant Check System that has long drawn the ire of gun rights advocates.
The proposal to scuttle the system in favor of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Instant Background Check System, is backed by Republican Speaker Mike Turzai and currently has over 70 bipartisan sponsors.
"The PICS system duplicates the background check which is already completed when a NICS... (GunPolicy.org)
Maine Gun Safety Groups Get $3 Million Bloomberg Donation
7 June 2016
Sun Journal (Maine), Associated Press
AUGUSTA — Maine gun safety advocates preparing for a big, costly fight over a background checks measure on the November ballot have received more than $3 million from a nonprofit backed by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Maine voters this fall will consider an initiative requiring background checks before gun transfers and sales between unlicensed firearm dealers. The measure has family, hunting and self-defense exceptions.
Federal law requires... (GunPolicy.org)
Gun Control Advocates Meet to Set UN Disarmament Agenda
5 June 2016
New American (USA)
Anti-gun globalists will meet in New York City this week discuss ways to confiscate small arms and ammunition from civilians and to consolidate monopoly control over those weapons in the hands of the governments of United Nations (UN) member states. The convention is part of a UN-controlled process of disarmament called the Programme of Action (PoA).
From June 6-10 delegates from around the world will attend the Sixth Biennial Meeting of States (BMS6) of the PoA. This... (GunPolicy.org)
Biggest US Gun Control Group Endorses Hillary Clinton
3 June 2016
New York Times
A major gun control group has endorsed Hillary Clinton, offering a lift to her campaign in a tighter-than-expected primary race in California and as she tries to pivot to a general election matchup with Donald J. Trump.
The group, Everytown for Gun Safety, announced its endorsement through a statement released early on Friday, the day after its National Gun Violence Awareness Day campaign.
"Gun Sense Voters have a champion in Hillary Clinton," John Feinblatt, the... (GunPolicy.org)
1934 US Firearm Law Shows How Well Gun Control Can Work
31 May 2016
New York Times, Opinion
For more than 80 years, the United States has enforced a tough and effective gun control law that most Americans have never heard of. It's a 1934 measure called the National Firearms Act, and it stands as a stark rebuke to the most sacred precepts of the gun lobby and provides a model we should build on.
Leaders of the National Rifle Association rarely talk about the firearms act, and that's probably because it imposes precisely the kinds of practical — and... (GunPolicy.org)
More Guns Make People Safer, Say US Gun Lobby Groups
29 May 2016
Washington Times
LOUISVILLE — Riots had broken out when Al Parsons was attending summer school at Louisiana State University soon after the Gun Control Act of 1968 passed, and someone was beating on his apartment door at midnight.
"I looked at my buddy. I said, 'None of my friends are coming this time of night,'" Mr. Parsons said. "He says, 'Mine either.'"
Mr. Parsons, a 67-year-old retiree from Indiana, said he had recently asked his father to purchase a pistol for him — a buy he... (GunPolicy.org)
Mass Shootings: Guns, More than Mental Health - US Senator
27 May 2016
The Hour (USA)
WASHINGTON — As co-author of major legislation to infuse life into the nation's resource-starved mental health care system, Sen. Chris Murphy believes there's an overlap between mental illness and the uptick of mass shootings, including Sandy Hook.
But he's dead-set against any suggestion that putting mental health care on par with its physical health counterpart will automatically solve the epidemic of gun violence.
"I understand clearly there's an intersection,... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Violence: 'Ordinary' 4-Shot Shootings Alone Killed 462
26 May 2016
New York Times, Editorial
Only in America: A computer algorithm about guns has been created to predict who is most likely to be shot soon, or to shoot someone.
The Chicago Police Department, desperate to reduce gun violence by street gangs, authorized this unusual tool three years ago and has been using it to track and caution the most likely offenders.
It is a remarkable state of affairs that local governments must resort to such an approach to deal with the reality of gun mayhem. Yet it is... (GunPolicy.org)
Hawaii Proposes Putting All Gun Owners in Federal Database
25 May 2016
NBC News (USA), Associated Press
Hawaii could break new ground on gun control by entering firearm owners into a federal database that will allow police to find out when any of them get arrested.
The proposal, which has passed the state Legislature and is awaiting a signature from Gov. David Ige, has drawn criticism from gun owners and some legal scholars who say it would infringe on owners' rights.
But others say it would probably withstand court challenges, since the Supreme Court has backed states'... (GunPolicy.org)
Four Gun Safety Initiatives to Watch in US Election 2016
23 May 2016
Mother Jones (USA)
After a bill to expand background checks for gun buyers stalled in the Washington state legislature in 2013, gun safety advocates tried a different path forward: collecting enough signatures to put the measure on the 2014 ballot. That November they landed a decisive victory, with 60 percent of voters approving the measure. Despite the longtime influence of the National Rifle Association and other pro-gun lobbyists in the nation's statehouses, background checks are... (GunPolicy.org)
Trump and Clinton on Guns, Race, Justice and Policing
21 May 2016
Guardian
For years seen as a losing battle, the push for gun control has become a central conflict of the 2016 presidential election, and part of a broader struggle between competing visions of policing, justice and racism in America.
Donald Trump, the presumptive nominee of the Republican party, has pledged that if elected he will eliminate "gun-free zones" and make it easier to carry a concealed firearm in all 50 states. National Rifle Association members cheered him on... (GunPolicy.org)
Canada Authorises Assault Rifles Banned by RCMP [FR]
18 May 2016
Huffington Post (Canada)
[Translated summary: In 2014, the RCMP banned certain types of semi-automatic guns, judging them easy to transform into automatic rifles. Now Ottawa has invalidated this measure, using a new law that allows the government to go beyond police decisions.]
Quelques jours avant de déclencher les élections, le gouvernement Harper a infirmé la décision de la GRC de prohiber certains types d'armes semi-automatiques, comme la carabine CZ-858 utilisée par Richard Henry... (GunPolicy.org)
America May Be Getting Ready For a Smarter Kind of Gun
17 May 2016
Huffington Post (USA)
Jonathan Mossberg has already made a smart gun — a shotgun that can only be discharged by someone wearing a ring that communicates with a chip inside the weapon, unlocking it.
The gunmaker's smart guns, there are about 25 of them, are nearly 20 years old. They have been tested repeatedly and kept in the homes of his friends and family for self-defense. But Mossberg's Florida-based company, iGun Technology Corp., has never scaled the high-tech components to a handgun.... (GunPolicy.org)
Nothing to Stop US Doctors Asking Patients About Their Guns
17 May 2016
US News & World Report
Physicians often don't ask patients whether they have a gun at home, but a group of doctors say it's time to start.
Dr. Garen Wintemute, director of the violence prevention research program at the University of California—Davis wrote recommendations for discussing gun ownership with patients in an article published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine. They recommended that doctors first ask during routine screening whether a patient keeps a gun in the house. If... (GunPolicy.org)
Most People Could Carry Guns Without Permits in Missouri
14 May 2016
New York Times, Associated Press
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri lawmakers have passed a sweeping expansion of gun rights in the state, one that would allow people to carry concealed guns without requiring permits and widen their right to stand and fight against perceived threats.
The legislation, which now goes to Gov. Jay Nixon for his signature, was among the most prominent measures passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature on the final day of its annual session on Friday. Mr. Nixon, a... (GunPolicy.org)
The Easiest US States In Which to Buy a Gun
13 May 2016
Huffington Post (USA)
The second amendment, which was passed by Congress on September 25, 1789, states, "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." The private right to own a firearm — for protection, for hunting, or for enjoyment — has remained central to the national ethos of the United States. Americans living in most states today would not have much trouble buying a gun.
In 36... (GunPolicy.org)
Five Reasons Why Facebook's Gun Sale Ban Isn't Working
9 May 2016
Forbes (USA)
Facebook has a gun problem.
In January the social media giant announced it was banning the sale of guns and ammunition on the site. The move was the culmination of months of behind-the-scenes lobbying from gun violence prevention advocates coupled with internal recognition at Facebook that the site is becoming a major e-commerce marketplace. But the ban isn't working. Sales continue to flood gun enthusiast groups around the country. While some have left the site... (GunPolicy.org)
Public Debate Over 87,671 Gun Deaths in Argentina [ES]
6 May 2016
Diario La Provincia (Argentina)
[Translated summary: According to a university study, there have been 87,671 firearm deaths between 1983 and 2012 in Argentina. The National Arms Registry's Director thinks the country needs to move forward with the civilian disarmament policy.]
Hugo Spinelli, investigador de la Universidad de Lanús (UNLa), realizó un informe en el que detalla que entre 1983 y 2012 hubo 87.671 muertes por armas de fuego en nuestro país.
Por su parte, el presidente de la Asociación... (GunPolicy.org)
US Gun Safety Group Leaders Receive Constant Threats
5 May 2016
Washington Post, Opinion
The day after the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., I started a Facebook page aimed at uniting American mothers in a fight against gun violence. Married and living in the suburbs of Indianapolis, I was a stay-at-home mom of five and not in any way political, aside from voting. But I'd seen the difference the women of MADD made around drunken driving. Why, I wondered, couldn't we do the same?
I was wholly unprepared for the blowback headed my way.
Within hours of... (GunPolicy.org)
100s of Child Gun Deaths "Occasional Mishaps" - Gun Lobby
5 May 2016
Mother Jones (USA)
In an in-depth investigation in 2013, Mother Jones found that guns kill hundreds of children per year in the United States. Many die in homicides, and many others die in accidents—mostly when children themselves pull the trigger. The kids shooting themselves or others have often been as young as two or three years old. Invariably these "tragedies" result from adults leaving unsecured firearms lying around in their homes or, in some cases, in their cars.
Since our... (GunPolicy.org)
German Gun Owners Feel Misunderstood, Some Envy USA
4 May 2016
CNN
It's been more than seven years since a 17-year-old dressed in military gear killed 15 people in a shooting spree in Winnenden, Germany, a picturesque little town just outside of Stuttgart.
Since then, a rare shooting tragedy in Germany, the country has implemented a national firearms registry, requiring the owners of 5.5 million legally owned guns to register them with the government.
The scale of gun ownership took photographers Miguel Hahn and Jan-Christophe... (GunPolicy.org)
Inside Secret Group For Gun Owners Banned From Facebook
3 May 2016
Forbes (USA)
He's been called "a good guy working for us behind enemy lines," "one of our allies," "a man who gives us hope," and, "the ultimate badass."
His name is Chuck Rossi, and he's a director of engineering at Facebook. He's also one of the company's most prominent gun enthusiasts, who, by his own account, has trained hundreds of fellow employees to shoot pistols. More recently, Rossi has taken on a new, unofficial, role: advocate for gun groups on Facebook.
For months,... (GunPolicy.org)
Obama Seeks Demonstration of 'Smart-Gun' Technology
29 April 2016
Washington Times
The Justice Department put out a call Friday for demonstrations of "smart-gun" technology, part of President Obama's executive actions pushing for more gun regulation.
In a notice published in the Federal Register, the National Institute of Justice announced it is seeking "an objective demonstration of the reliability of firearms available today with advanced gun safety technology integrated into the firearm." Prize money of up to $150,000 will be awarded to the most... (GunPolicy.org)
Obama Puts His Weight Behind Smart-Gun Technology
29 April 2016
New York Times
WASHINGTON — President Obama will use the power of his office to try to jump-start long-stalled "smart-gun" technology that could eventually allow only the owner of a firearm to use it, the White House announced Friday.
Over the opposition of gun rights groups, he also vowed to push ahead with a new federal policy giving the F.B.I. access to more mental health records of some Social Security recipients to better flag people who might be banned from buying a gun.
The... (GunPolicy.org)
White House Hopes to Launch US Smart Gun Technology
29 April 2016
NBC News (USA)
The White House hopes it can finally launch smart gun technology — childproof weaponry aimed at stopping accidental shootings and increasing gun safety.
The administration is, for the first time, trying to put in place the requirements needed so law enforcement could eventually use smart guns. It's using findings in a new report from the Defense, Homeland Security and Justice Departments — agencies that were directed in January to look into the matter as Obama... (GunPolicy.org)
Australian Gun Law Success Could Be Model for USA [FR]
28 April 2016
Euronews, Reuters
[Translated summary: Firearm legislation in Australia has changed dramatically since the Port Arthur massacre. 20 years later, there hasn't been another mass shooting, the number of firearm homicides has dropped and the probability of being killed by a firearm has been reduced by 72%.]
Ce jeudi 28 avril est un triste anniversaire pour l'Australie. Il y a 20 ans a lieu le massacre de Port Arthur en Tasmanie, lors duquel un homme de 28 ans tue 35 personnes et en blesse... (GunPolicy.org)
Australia's National Gun Laws Have Weakened - Opinion
28 April 2016
Sydney Morning Herald, Opinion
Twenty years ago, a lone gun man armed with high-powered gun opened fire at the historic site of Port Arthur in Tasmania, killing 35 people, wounding 18 others and traumatising so many more.
In response to this massacre Australia introduced strong national uniform gun laws. It was an event that not only radically shaped Australia's gun laws, but our cultural landscape. Australia is now known as the country that heroically stood up for public safety by making gun... (GunPolicy.org)
Australian Gun Laws Should Be Strengthened - SMH Editorial
28 April 2016
Sydney Morning Herald, Editorial
Port Arthur. Those two words still haunt the survivors, the families of victims and all who remember the tragic events of April 28, 1996.
Yet 20 years on, a new generation is hearing, perhaps for the first time, the terror of the Port Arthur massacre.
How what psychiatrists called "an intellectually handicapped and personality disordered" man without a driver's licence or gun licence could drive to the Tasmanian site, and use one of the many semi-automatic weapons he... (GunPolicy.org)