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Abstract
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Firearm-related injuries are a substantial public health problem. A wide array of policies designed to prevent these injuries have been discussed, but few are enacted into legislation. Even fewer have undergone scientific evaluation for their effectiveness. We offer a nosology for categorizing existing and future gun policies. A brief review of the effectiveness of existing gun policies is presented, and an argument is made for redirecting gun policy.
VioLit summary:
OBJECTIVE:
The aim of this article by Teret and Wintemute was to provide a review of the efficacy of existing gun policies, and secondly, to provide an argument for redirecting gun policy from an emphasis on use and possession of guns to targeting the manufacturing, marketing, and sale of guns.
METHODOLOGY:
A non-experimental review of the literature surrounding gun policy was employed.
FINDINGS/DISCUSSION:
First the authors presented an exhibit of an expanded version of the gun policy suggested by Baker et al. This gun policy included options for legislative and regulatory policy at the local, state, and federal levels. The options presented had been currently under discussion as well as possibilities for the future. The policy focused on firearm legislation, regulation, and litigation. Regulation of manufacturing, sales and possession of ammunition was also briefly mentioned.
The authors reviewed studies beginning in 1978 on the effectiveness of gun control laws on violence. They found that the studies have been, and continue to be controversial. They began with the 1978 Comptroller General's Report to Congress which stated that there were only a few good empirical studies which have evaluated the impact of gun control on violent crime. Further, the report stated that some studies attempted to show that gun control reduced homicide and others concluded that limiting firearm availability resulted in decreased murders. The report however, concluded that none of the studies showed a decrease in the overall level of violence due to gun control.
The next report cited was a literature review done ten years later by the American Medical Association on the topic of guns and the public's health. The report was unable to adequately find answers to their questions and noted that it was the most complex and controversial issue facing the public health profession in recent years. The authors argued that there was still little known regarding the effectiveness of gun-control measures and that evaluations have been inadequate. Further they emphasized that most evaluation literature focused on laws regulating the sale and possession of guns with none focusing on the manufacturing of guns specifically because there haven't been any laws which regulate gun manufacturing.
Studies which evaluated the efficacy of regulating the sale of guns were also included. They cited a study conducted by Cook and Blose regarding the federal Gun Control Act of 1968 which banned the sale of guns to select groups of people such as convicted felons, illegal aliens and fugitives. The study found that there was no evidence for, or against, the argument that police checks on handgun buyers reduced violent crime rates. The study argued that incomplete state criminal records would allow a convicted felon to purchase a gun despite the police check. On the contrary, they noted that broader restrictions on the sale of guns may be more effective. They cited Sloan et al. who examined the effects of gun control laws in Washington, King County, Vancouver, and British Columbia. They found large differences between Vancouver and King County which were largely due to a higher handgun suicide rate in King County.
Studies on the possession of guns had more consistent positive findings. In the District of Columbia, in 1976, the Firearms Control Regulations Act, which prohibited the purchase, sale, possession, and transfer of handguns by civilians in Washington D.C. unless a citizen had already owned the handgun. Colin and Loftin et al. found that the frequency of homicides and suicides by firearms had decreased by twenty five percent from 1976 to 1987. Similarly, the Barley Fox Amendment issued by Massachusetts in 1974 was also considered by the authors to have positive effects on violence due to the severity of the law.
The authors also included a review of the effects of mandatory sentencing and noted that McDowall et al. would argue that mandatory sentencing has a preventative effect on homicide.
Lastly, the authors proposed that the gun policy should be redirected from an emphasis on possession and use of guns to focusing on the manufacturing, marketing, and sale of guns. The authors argued that a ban on the manufacturing, sale or possession of certain guns would be highly effective. They recognize the difficulty in banning guns due to the Second Amendment, but note that it has been possible since Illinois has passed a ban on hand gun possession. Further, the authors emphasize the importance of federal regulation because strict restrictions in one area could be undermined by lax restrictions in a nearby area. The authors also strongly suggested that decisions regarding manufacturing and sales bans on certain types of guns should be informed by data such as a fatality reporting system. Moreover, they argued that gun production should be regulated in the same manner as other consumer products. Guns should be altered to prevent unintentional deaths and injuries. In terms of advertising, the authors noted that lack of regulation allows gun advertisements to promote guns as a necessary possession for household protection which does not concur with studies that suggest that the risk of homicide in the home may be increased by a factor of 2.7 if a firearm was present. Similarly, regulation regarding the retail sale of guns should be improved. It was noted that in 1992 the country had more gun dealers than gas stations, and that for only ten dollars a year a dealer's license could be obtained. Finally, the authors stressed the need for the evaluation of the regulation, manufacture, marketing, sale, possession, and use of firearms in order to inform policy. The authors concluded that the redirection of policy regulation to address the manufacture, marketing, and sale of guns, in other words, the product itself, would be more successful in reducing the number of gun deaths in the U.S. than the current emphasis on the users.
AUTHORS' RECOMMENDATIONS:
The focus of this paper was to ultimately make the recommendation to redirect gun policy.
(CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado)
Violence Prevention
Policy Recommendations
Public Health Approach
Firearms Policy
Firearms Control
Firearms Ownership
Firearms Purchasing
Firearms Injury
Firearms Legislation
Firearms Prevention
Firearms Violence
Adult Firearms Use
Adult Violence
Criminal Justice System
Correctional Decision Making
Firearms Homicide |