Citation

Sorenson SB. Science 1999; 286(5444): 1481-1482.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1999, American Association for the Advancement of Science)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Motor vehicles are the leading cause of injury death in the United States; firearms are the second. Unlike motor vehicles, firearms are not subject to governmental consumer product standards. A survey of 1204 U.S. adults found substantial support (74.9%) for government safety standards for firearms. Child-proofing and personalizing handguns and congressional hearings into the firearms industry also were popular. A slight majority favored banning inexpensive, easily concealed handguns known as Saturday Night Specials. Just over one-third favored suing firearm manufacturers or banning personal possession of handguns. Full benefit from any firearm design modification will likely take years to materialize.