GunFacts Hasn’t Any (4)
Page 4, for those following at home:
Myth: People do not need concealable weapons
Fact: In 80% of gun defenses, the defender used a concealable handgun. A quarter of the gun defenses occurred in places away from the defender’s home.18
Author cites “18 “Armed Resistance to Crime: The Prevalence and Nature of Self-Defense with a Gun,” by Gary Kleck and Marc Gertz, in The Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology, Northwestern University School of Law, Volume 86, Number 1, Fall, 1995″
This Kleck’s famous “2.5M DGU annually” claim. As I’ve noted here and here.
By Kleck’s own numbers, 2.5M DGUs should produce some 30,000 justifiable homicides each year. Given that FBI UCARs rarely have more than 300 justifiable homicides annually–we should approach Kleck’s numbers with a small boulder of salt.
Fact: 77% of all violent crime occurs in public places.19 This makes concealed carry necessary for almost all self-defense needs. But due to onerous laws forbidding concealed carry, only 26.8% of defensive gun uses occurred away from home.20
Author cites 1993 BJS stats for the 77% figure and Kleck and Gertz for the DGU info.
The 77% figure is within several percentage points of more recent (2005) BJS stats. It should be noted, however, the BJS doesn’t say “public places”–instead its says:
In 2005 -
The location of about a quarter of incidents of violent crime was at or near the victim’s home. Among common locales for violent crimes were on streets other than those near the victim’s home (19%), at school (12%), or at a commercial establishment (8%).For violent crime, about half occurred within a mile from home and 76% within five miles. Only 4% of victims of violent crime reported that the crime took place more than fifty miles from their home.
Of victims of violent crime, 22% were involved in some form of leisure activity away from home at the time of their victimization, 22% said they were at home, and another 20% mentioned they were at work or traveling to or from work when the crime occurred.
BJS also notes violent crime, in the form of murder or rape, were most often committed by an acquaintance.
Fact: Often, small weapons that are capable of being concealed are the only ones usable by people of small stature or with physical disabilities.
Author provides no cite; this appears to be strictly opinion. It also hinges on author’s definition of usable. Does usable mean safely or does it mean the person can fire the weapon?
Fact: The average citizen doesn’t need a Sport Utility Vehicle, but driving one is arguably safer than driving other vehicles. Similarly, carrying a concealable gun makes the owner – and his or her community – safer by providing protection not otherwise available.
Author provides no cite–another opinion. It also isn’t true, according to the Transportation Research Board. The CCW info isn’t supported by any data.
