Psychol Rep. 2004 Jun;94(3 Pt 1):819-26.
Gun control law (Bill C-17), suicide, and homicide in Canada.
Source
Division of Health, Leisure, and Exercise Science, The University of West Florida, 11000 University Parkway, Pensacola, FL 32514-5750, USA. fbridges@uwf.edu
Abstract
Canadian Bill C-17 was implemented in 1991 to restrict the use of firearms, providing a chance to investigate the effect of firearm control laws in the use of firearms for suicide and homicide. Following Lester and Leenaars’ comprehensive studies, the present study examined the use of firearms for suicide and homicide during the period prior to the bill and during the period after the passing of Bill C-17 to assess the association of the bill with rates of suicide and homicide by method. Analysis showed a significant decrease after passage of Bill C-17 in the rates of suicides and homicides involving firearms and the percentage of suicides using firearms. The analysis provides support for the position that restricting the availability of firearms as a lethal means of committing suicide and homicide may help reduce the numbers of suicides and homicides.
Inj Prev. 2006 Dec;12(6):365-72.
Australia’s 1996 gun law reforms: faster falls in firearm deaths, firearm suicides, and a decade without mass shootings.
Chapman S, Alpers P, Agho K, Jones M.
Source
School of Public Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. sc@med.usyd.edu.au
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
After a 1996 firearm massacre in Tasmania in which 35 people died, Australian governments united to remove semi-automatic and pump-action shotguns and rifles from civilian possession, as a key component of gun law reforms.
OBJECTIVE:
To determine whether Australia’s 1996 major gun law reforms were associated with changes in rates of mass firearm homicides, total firearm deaths, firearm homicides and firearm suicides, and whether there were any apparent method substitution effects for total homicides and suicides.
DESIGN:
Observational study using official statistics. Negative binomial regression analysis of changes in firearm death rates and comparison of trends in pre-post gun law reform firearm-related mass killings.
SETTING:
Australia, 1979-2003.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:
Changes in trends of total firearm death rates, mass fatal shooting incidents, rates of firearm homicide, suicide and unintentional firearm deaths, and of total homicides and suicides per 100,000 population.
RESULTS:
In the 18 years before the gun law reforms, there were 13 mass shootings in Australia, and none in the 10.5 years afterwards. Declines in firearm-related deaths before the law reforms accelerated after the reforms for total firearm deaths (p = 0.04), firearm suicides (p = 0.007) and firearm homicides (p = 0.15), but not for the smallest category of unintentional firearm deaths, which increased. No evidence of substitution effect for suicides or homicides was observed. The rates per 100,000 of total firearm deaths, firearm homicides and firearm suicides all at least doubled their existing rates of decline after the revised gun laws.
CONCLUSIONS:
Australia’s 1996 gun law reforms were followed by more than a decade free of fatal mass shootings, and accelerated declines in firearm deaths, particularly suicides. Total homicide rates followed the same pattern. Removing large numbers of rapid-firing firearms from civilians may be an effective way of reducing mass shootings, firearm homicides and firearm suicides.
PMID:
17170183
[PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE]
PMCID:
PMC2704353
CMAJ. 1993 May 15; 148(10): 1721–1725.
International correlations between gun ownership and rates of homicide and suicide.
M Killias
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To examine international correlations between reported rates of household gun ownership and rates of homicide and suicide with a gun. DESIGN: Survey. POPULATION: People who responded to a telephone survey conducted by the 1989 International Crime Survey in 11 European countries, Australia, Canada and the United States. RESULTS: Positive correlations were obtained between the rates of household gun ownership and the national rates of homicide and suicide as well as the proportions of homicides and suicides committed with a gun. There was no negative correlation between the rates of ownership and the rates of homicide and suicide committed by other means; this indicated that the other means were not used to “compensate” for the absence of guns in countries with a lower rate of gun ownership. CONCLUSION: Larger studies are needed to examine more closely possible confounding factors such as the national tendency toward violent solutions, and more information on the type and availability of guns will be helpful in future studies. Nevertheless, the correlations detected in this study suggest that the presence of a gun in the home increases the likelihood of homicide or suicide.
MMWR Surveill Summ. 2012 Sep 14;61(6):1-43.
Surveillance for violent deaths–National Violent Death Reporting System, 16 states, 2009.
Karch DL, Logan J, McDaniel D, Parks S, Patel N; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Division of Violence Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, CDC, Atlanta, GA 30341-3724, USA.
Abstract
PROBLEM/CONDITION:
An estimated 50,000 persons die annually in the United States as a result of violence-related injuries. This report summarizes data from CDC’s National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) regarding violent deaths from 16 U.S. states for 2009. Results are reported by sex, age group, race/ethnicity, marital status, location of injury, method of injury, circumstances of injury, and other selected characteristics.
REPORTING PERIOD COVERED:
2009.
DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM:
NVDRS collects data regarding violent deaths obtained from death certificates, coroner/medical examiner reports, and law enforcement reports. NVDRS data collection began in 2003 with seven states (Alaska, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, South Carolina, and Virginia) participating; six states (Colorado, Georgia, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin) joined in 2004, four (California, Kentucky, New Mexico, and Utah) in 2005, and two (Ohio and Michigan) in 2010, for a total of 19 states. This report includes data from 16 states that collected statewide data in 2009. California is excluded because data were collected in only four counties. Ohio and Michigan are excluded because data collection did not begin until 2010.
RESULTS:
For 2009, a total of 15,981 fatal incidents involving 16,418 deaths were captured by NVDRS in the 16 states included in this report. The majority (60.6%) of deaths were suicides, followed by homicides and deaths involving legal intervention (i.e., deaths caused by police and other persons with legal authority to use deadly force, excluding legal executions) (24.7%), deaths of undetermined intent (14.2%), and unintentional firearm deaths (0.5%). Suicides occurred at higher rates among males, non-Hispanic whites, American Indians/Alaska Natives, and persons aged 45-54 years. Suicides occurred most often in a house or apartment and involved the use of firearms. Suicides were preceded primarily by mental health, intimate partner, or physical health problems or by a crisis during the previous 2 weeks. Homicides occurred at higher rates among males and persons aged 20-24 years; rates were highest among non-Hispanic black males. The majority of homicides involved the use of a firearm and occurred in a house or apartment or on a street/highway. Homicides were preceded primarily by arguments and interpersonal conflicts or in conjunction with another crime. Characteristics associated with other manners of death, circumstances preceding death, and special populations also are highlighted in this report.
INTERPRETATION:
This report provides a detailed summary of data from NVDRS for 2009. The results indicate that violent deaths resulting from self-inflicted or interpersonal violence disproportionately affected adults aged <55 years, males, and certain racial/ethnic minority populations. For homicides and suicides, relationship problems, interpersonal conflicts, mental health problems, and recent crises were among the primary factors that might have precipitated the fatal injuries. Because additional information might be reported subsequently as participating states update their findings, the data provided in this report are preliminary.
PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION:
For the occurrence of violent deaths in the United States to be better understood and ultimately prevented, accurate, timely, and comprehensive surveillance data are necessary. NVDRS data can be used to monitor the occurrence of violence-related fatal injuries and assist public health authorities in the development, implementation, and evaluation of programs and policies to reduce and prevent violent deaths at the national, state, and local levels. The continued development and expansion of NVDRS is essential to CDC’s efforts to reduce the personal, familial, and societal costs of violence. Additional efforts are needed to increase the number of states participating in NVDRS, with an ultimate goal of full national representation.
Psychol Sci. 2009 Nov;20(11):1400-5. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02456.x. Epub 2009 Oct 14.
School violence and the culture of honor.
Brown RP, Osterman LL, Barnes CD.
The University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019-2007, USA. rpbrown@psychology.ou.edu
Abstract
We investigated the hypothesis that a sociocultural variable known as the culture of honor would be uniquely predictive of school-violence indicators. Controlling for demographic characteristics associated in previous studies with violent crime among adults, we found that high-school students in culture-of-honor states were significantly more likely than high-school students in non-culture-of-honor states to report having brought a weapon to school in the past month. Using data aggregated over a 20-year period, we also found that culture-of-honor states had more than twice as many school shootings per capita as non-culture-of-honor states. The data revealed important differences between school violence and general patterns of homicide and are consistent with the view that many acts of school violence reflect retaliatory aggression springing from intensely experienced social-identity threats.
Psychiatry Res. 2009 Sep 30;169(2):154-8. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2008.06.038. Epub 2009 Jul 30.
Preventing suicide and homicide in the United States: the potential benefit in human lives.
Papadopoulos FC, Skalkidou A, Sergentanis TN, Kyllekidis S, Ekselius L, Petridou ET.
Department of Neuroscience, Psychiatry, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden.
Abstract
In order to assess the potential benefit in human lives if all geographical regions in the US (Northeast, South, Midwest, and West) achieved the lowest suicide and homicide rates observed within these regions, age-, race- and gender-adjusted suicide and homicide rates for each of the four regions were calculated based on data retrieved using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention database for 1999-2004. Data on known risk factors were retrieved from online sources. Overall suicide rates (10.42 per 100,000) exceeded homicide rates (6.97 per 100,000). Almost 27% (12,942 lives per year) of the 288,222 suicide and homicide deaths during the study period might have been avoided if all US regions achieved the mortality rate reported by the Northeast. A firearm was used in 55% of all suicides and 66% of all homicides. In the total estimate of avoidable deaths, firearm suicides (90%) and firearm homicides (75%) were overrepresented. The Northeast had the lowest access to firearms (20%) contrasted to almost double in the other regions, whereas greater firearms availability was related to unrestricted firearm legislation. Measures to restrict firearms availability should be highly prioritized in the public health agenda in order to achieve an impressive benefit in human lives.
Am J Prev Med. 2008 Jul;35(1):1-6. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2008.03.023. Epub 2008 May 14.
Firearm death rates and association with level of firearm purchase background check.
Sumner SA, Layde PM, Guse CE.
Injury Research Center, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226-0509, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
Past ecologic analyses of firearm deaths have studied the effects of various gun-control laws; however, no study has analyzed the effects of the differences among states in the background checks required for firearm purchase. Some states utilize a federal agency to conduct the background checks; others use a state agency; still others use a local agency. The information potentially available to checking agencies at different levels of government varies; the consequence of this variation is not known.
METHODS:
In 2007, negative binomial regression models were used to assess the association between the Department of Justice classification of agencies conducting firearm background checks for each state in 2002-2004 and firearm suicide and homicide rates for the same years from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control while controlling for age, race, unemployment, crime, income inequality, poverty, alcohol consumption, urbanization, and divorce rate.
RESULTS:
Performing local-level background checks was associated with a 27%-lower firearm suicide rate (incidence rate ratio [IRR]=0.73, 95% CI=0.60, 0.89) and a 22%-lower homicide rate (IRR=0.78, 95% CI=0.61, 1.01) in adults>or=21 years.
CONCLUSIONS:
Using local-level agencies to perform firearm background checks is associated with reduced rates of firearm suicide and homicide. Methods to increase local-level agency background checks, such as authorizing local police or sheriff’s departments to conduct them, or developing the capability to share local-level records with federal databases, should be evaluated as a means of reducing firearm deaths.
Br J Psychiatry. 2007 Sep;191:253-7.
Firearm legislation reform in the European Union: impact on firearm availability, firearm suicide and homicide rates in Austria.
Kapusta ND, Etzersdorfer E, Krall C, Sonneck G.
Source
Medical University of Vienna, Department of Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, A-1090 Vienna, Austria. nestor.kapusta@meduniwien.ac.at
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
The availability of firearms in homes and at aggregate levels is a risk factor for suicide and homicide. One method of reducing access to suicidal means is the restriction of firearm availability through more stringent legislation.
AIMS:
To evaluate the impact of firearm legislation reform on firearm suicides and homicides as well as on the availability of firearms in Austria.
METHOD:
Official statistics on suicides, firearm homicides and firearm licences issued from 1985 to 2005 were examined. To assess the effect of the new firearm law, enacted in 1997, linear regression and Poisson regressions were performed using data from before and after the law reform.
RESULTS:
The rate of firearm suicides among some age groups, percentage of firearm suicides, as well as the rate of firearm homicides and the rate of firearm licences, significantly decreased after a more stringent firearm law had been implemented.
CONCLUSIONS:
Our findings provide evidence that the introduction of restrictive firearmlegislation effectively reduced the rates of firearm suicide and homicide. The decline in firearm-related deaths seems to have been mediated by the legal restriction of firearm availability. Restrictive firearm legislation should be an integral part of national suicide prevention programmes in countries with high firearm suicide rates.
Health Aff (Millwood). 2007 Mar-Apr;26(2):575-84.
Reductions in firearm-related mortality and hospitalizations in Brazil after gun control.
Marinho de Souza Mde F, Macinko J, Alencar AP, Malta DC, de Morais Neto OL.
Source
Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
Abstract
This paper provides evidence suggesting that gun control measures have been effective in reducing the toll of violence on population health in Brazil. In 2004, for the first time in more than a decade, firearm-related mortality declined 8 percent from the previous year. Firearm-related hospitalizations also reversed a historical trend that year by decreasing 4.6 percent from 2003 levels. These changes corresponded with anti-gun legislation passed in late 2003 and disarmament campaigns undertaken throughout the country since mid-2004. The estimated impact of these measures, if they prove causal, could be as much as 5,563 firearm-related deaths averted in 2004 alone.
Radical Genuineness 