States With Higher Gun Ownership and Weak Gun Laws Lead Nation in Gun Death [View all]

[Judi Lynn]

February 7, 2013
5:19 PM
States With Higher Gun Ownership and Weak Gun Laws Lead Nation in Gun Death

Alaska, Louisiana, Montana, Alabama, and Wyoming Have Highest Gun Death Rates


WASHINGTON - February 7 - States with higher gun ownership rates and weak gun laws have the highest rates of gun death according to a new analysis by the Violence Policy Center (VPC) of 2010 national data (the most recent available) from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

The analysis reveals that the five states with the highest per capita gun death rates were Alaska, Louisiana, Montana, Alabama, and Wyoming. Each of these states had a per capita gun death rate far exceeding the national per capita gun death rate for the 50 states of 10.25 per 100,000 for 2010. Each state has lax gun laws and higher gun ownership rates. By contrast, states with strong gun laws and low rates of gun ownership had far lower rates of firearm-related death. Ranking last in the nation for gun death was Hawaii, followed by Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Jersey, and New York. (See rankings below for top and bottom five states. See http://www.vpc.org/fadeathchart13.htm for a ranking of all 50 states.)

VPC Legislative Director Kristen Rand states, “The equation is simple. More guns lead to more gun death, but limiting exposure to firearms saves lives.” The total number of Americans killed by gunfire rose to 31,672 in 2010 from 31,347 in 2009.

More:
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2013/02/07-8