Research Paper On Gun Violence

Gun Violence is a very big problem that occurs in the United States. It seems like every day there is another news story about a mass shooting, murder, robbery, or something involving a firearm. The U.S ranks much higher than any other country when it comes to gun related deaths and it’s been that way for a long time. Gun violence and gun control is hot topic in American politics; with some calling for an all out ban on guns and others wanting less restrictions. Here, different types of gun violence and possible solutions will be discussed. Using a gun is one of the most common and easiest ways of committing suicide. Firearms are very easy to obtain and therefore they are often used to commit suicide. The “presence of a gun in a home corresponds

Gun crime is simply defined as a crime committed with a gun. The United States has the highest percentage of gun ownership in the world and also some of the highest murder rates with guns. Gun crime was very high in the 80’s and a lot of states passed gun laws to fight against it. These states passed laws that allowed citizens to carry a weapon on them. These were known as “right to carry” laws or CCW laws. “These CCW laws cover almost half the nation's population” (Michael Barone, 1998). The idea of allowing almost half the population of the United States to be able to carry a weapon in public was to be a deterrent against criminals. These laws did have a positive effect on gun crime. “Robbery rates in right-to-carry states were rising until the laws were passed and then fell continuously after that point” (Plassmann & Whitley, 2003). The state laws also caused “a 4.5% drop in murder rates during the first three years of the law” (Plassmann & Whitley). The fact is “knowledge that potential victims may be armed deters criminals from crimes, and victims, by brandishing a gun or (much more rarely) shooting it, foil many attempted crimes” (Michael Barone, 1998). Although there are more guns in circulation that doesn’t mean there will be more crime with guns. “We will be better off with more of them in the hands of law-abiding citizens” (Michael Barone, 1998). When there are more guns in circulation there more guns are in the hands of good people. If a criminal is going to commit a gun crime they will be deterred if they know that a person has a high chance of having a weapon on them. Using statistical models, it is estimated, “that there would have been 1,400 more murders in concealed-weapons states in 1992 in the absence of those laws and 4,000 more rapes” (Michael Barone, 1998). The solution to reducing gun crime is simply getting more guns into the hands of good, law-abiding citizens. By removing guns you are