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{{about|global gun violence|gun violence in the United States|Gun violence in the United States}} {{about|global gun violence|gun violence in the United States|Gun violence in the United States}}
'''Gun violence''' defined literally means the use of a ] to threaten or inflict violence or harm. Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may<ref name="isbn1-57607-268-1">{{cite book |author=Carter, Gregg Lee |title=Guns in American society: an encyclopedia of history, politics, culture, and the law |publisher=ABC-CLIO |location=Santa Barbara, Calif |year=2002 |pages=262 |isbn=1-57607-268-1 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref> or may not<ref name="Theodore">{{cite web | author=Theodore, Larissa |title=GUNS: A RIGHT OR A SOCIETAL ILL? | url= http://www.timesonline.com/articles/2008/03/29/news/top_stories/doc47eef7e5e02b6867328736.txt | publisher=Beaver County Times and Allegheny Times |date=2008-03-29| quote=Gun violence by definition is people breaking the law, and drugs are a huge part of it in inner cities...It's not the gun that is causing them to commit the act.}}</ref><ref name="mppgv"></ref> include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or the safe lawful use of firearms for sport, hunting, and target practice. Gun violence encompasses intentional crime characterized as homicide (although not all homicide is automatically a crime) and ], as well as unintentional injury and death resulting from the misuse of firearms, sometimes by children and adolescents.<ref name="eph"></ref>{{Dead link|date=August 2011}} Gun violence statistics also may include self-inflicted gunshot wounds (both suicide, ] and suicide/homicide combinations sometimes seen within families).<ref name="ICHV"></ref> '''Gun violence''' defined literally means the use of a ] to threaten or inflict violence or harm. Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may<ref name="isbn1-57607-268-1">{{cite book |author=Carter, Gregg Lee |title=Guns in American society: an encyclopedia of history, politics, culture, and the law |publisher=ABC-CLIO |location=Santa Barbara, Calif |year=2002 |pages=262 |isbn=1-57607-268-1 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref> or may not<ref name="Theodore">{{cite web | author=Theodore, Larissa |title=GUNS: A RIGHT OR A SOCIETAL ILL? | url= http://www.timesonline.com/articles/2008/03/29/news/top_stories/doc47eef7e5e02b6867328736.txt | publisher=Beaver County Times and Allegheny Times |date=2008-03-29| quote=Gun violence by definition is people breaking the law, and drugs are a huge part of it in inner cities...It's not the gun that is causing them to commit the act.}}</ref><ref name="mppgv"></ref> include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or the safe lawful use of firearms for sport, hunting, and <a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)"><a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)">target</a></a> practice. Gun violence encompasses intentional crime characterized as homicide (although not all homicide is automatically a crime) and ], as well as unintentional injury and death resulting from the misuse of firearms, sometimes by children and adolescents.<ref name="eph"></ref>{{Dead link|date=August 2011}} Gun violence statistics also may include self-inflicted gunshot wounds (both suicide, ] and suicide/homicide combinations sometimes seen within families).<ref name="ICHV"></ref>


The phrase "gun crime" is consistently used by both gun-control and gun-rights policy advocates, with differing emphases: the former group advocates reducing gun violence by enacting and enforcing regulations on guns, gun owners, and the gun industry, while the latter group advocates education on how to be a responsible gun owner.<ref></ref><ref></ref> The phrase "gun crime" is consistently used by both gun-control and gun-rights policy advocates, with differing emphases: the former group advocates reducing gun violence by enacting and enforcing regulations on guns, gun owners, and the gun industry, while the latter group advocates <a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)"><a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)">education</a></a> on how to be a responsible gun owner.<ref></ref><ref></ref>


Levels of gun violence vary greatly across the world, with very high rates in ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ], as well as high levels in ], ], ], and some other ], Levels of gun violence are low in ], ], ], the ] and many other countries.<ref name="unsurvey">{{cite web |url=http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/homicide.html |title=2011 Global Study on Homicide |publisher=] (UNODC) |accessdate=2012-12-18}}</ref> The United States has the highest rate of gun related injuries (not deaths per capita) among developed countries, though it also has the highest rate of gun ownership and the highest rate of officers.<ref>Cook, Philip J., Gun Violence: The Real Cost, Page 29. Oxford University Press, 2002</ref> Levels of gun violence vary greatly across the world, with <a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)"><a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)">very</a></a> high rates in ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ], as well as high levels in ], ], ], and some other ], Levels of gun violence are low in ], ], ], the ] and many other countries.<ref name="unsurvey">{{cite web |url=http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/homicide.html |title=2011 Global Study on Homicide |publisher=] (UNODC) |accessdate=2012-12-18}}</ref> The United States has the highest rate of gun related injuries (not deaths per capita) among developed countries, though it also has the highest rate of gun ownership and the highest rate of officers.<ref>Cook, Philip J., Gun Violence: The Real Cost, Page 29. Oxford University Press, 2002</ref>


==Suicide== ==Suicide==
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==Costs of violence committed with guns== ==Costs of violence committed with guns==
Violence committed with guns leads to significant monetary costs. Phillip J. Cook estimated that such violence costs the USA $100 billion annually.<ref name="Cook 2000"/> Emergency medical care is a major contributor to the monetary costs of such violence. It was determined in a study that for every firearm death in the USA for one year from 1 June 1992, an average of three firearm-related injuries were treated in hospital emergency departments.<ref></ref> Violence committed with guns leads to significant monetary costs. Phillip J. Cook estimated that such violence costs the USA $100 billion annually.<ref name="Cook 2000"/> Emergency medical care is a major contributor to the monetary costs of such violence. It was determined in a study that for every firearm death in the USA for one year from 1 June 1992, an average of three firearm-related injuries were treated in hospital emergency departments.<ref></ref> if your child or you think he is violent then take your child to a zicologist!


Psychological costs of violence committed with guns are also clearly documented. ] found that individuals who experience violence are prone to mental and other health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and sleep deprivation. These problems increase for those who experience violence as children.<ref>{{cite web|last=Garbarino|first=James|title=Children, Youth, and Gun Violence: Analysis and Recommendations|url=http://futureofchildren.org/publications/journals/article/index.xml?journalid=42&articleid=162|publisher=Princeton-Brookings}}</ref> Psychological costs of violence committed with guns are also clearly documented. ] found that individuals who experience violence are prone to mental and other health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and sleep deprivation. These problems increase for those who experience violence as children.<ref>{{cite web|last=Garbarino|first=James|title=Children, Youth, and Gun Violence: Analysis and Recommendations|url=http://futureofchildren.org/publications/journals/article/index.xml?journalid=42&articleid=162|publisher=Princeton-Brookings}}</ref>

Revision as of 02:38, 13 February 2013

This article is about global gun violence. For gun violence in the United States, see Gun violence in the United States.

Gun violence defined literally means the use of a firearm to threaten or inflict violence or harm. Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may or may not include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or the safe lawful use of firearms for sport, hunting, and <a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)"><a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)">target</a></a> practice. Gun violence encompasses intentional crime characterized as homicide (although not all homicide is automatically a crime) and assault with a deadly weapon, as well as unintentional injury and death resulting from the misuse of firearms, sometimes by children and adolescents. Gun violence statistics also may include self-inflicted gunshot wounds (both suicide, attempted suicide and suicide/homicide combinations sometimes seen within families).

The phrase "gun crime" is consistently used by both gun-control and gun-rights policy advocates, with differing emphases: the former group advocates reducing gun violence by enacting and enforcing regulations on guns, gun owners, and the gun industry, while the latter group advocates <a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)"><a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)">education</a></a> on how to be a responsible gun owner.

Levels of gun violence vary greatly across the world, with <a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)"><a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)">very</a></a> high rates in Brazil, Venezuela, Mexico, South Africa, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Jamaica, as well as high levels in Russia, The Philippines, Thailand, and some other underdeveloped countries, Levels of gun violence are low in Singapore, Japan, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and many other countries. The United States has the highest rate of gun related injuries (not deaths per capita) among developed countries, though it also has the highest rate of gun ownership and the highest rate of officers.

Suicide

Main article: Suicide methods

Some research shows an association between household firearm ownership and gun suicide rates. For example, it was found that individuals in a firearm owning home are close to five times more likely to commit suicide than those individuals who do not own firearms. However, other research found a statistical association among a group of fourteen developed nations but that statistical association was lost when additional countries were included. During the 1980s and early 1990s, there was a strong upward trend in adolescent suicides with a gun, as well as a sharp overall increase in suicides among those age 75 and over. In the United States, firearms remain the most common method of suicide, accounting for 52.1% of all suicides committed during 2005.

Research also indicates no association vis-à-vis safe-storage laws of guns that are owned, and gun suicide rates, and studies that attempt to link gun ownership to likely victimology often fail to account for the presence of guns owned by other people leading to a conclusion that safe-storage laws do not appear to affect gun suicide rates or juvenile accidental gun death.

Homicide

Homicide is defined as the intentional and illegal death caused by one individual on another and in this case with a firearm. In a recent study by the UN, it was found that firearms were used in an average of 60% of all homicides. In 2010 USA homicides, guns are the weapon of choice, especially for multiple homicides.

The homicide statistics listed below are for "intentional homicide", which is "death deliberately inflicted on a person by another person", including justifiable homicide and criminal homicide.

The statistics simply list the answers to a questionnaire. The web page advises great caution in interpreting the figures and says they "cannot take into account the differences that exist between the legal definitions of offences in various countries, of the different methods of tallying, etc. In particular, to use the figures as a basis for comparison between different countries is highly problematic as is comparing data from different years among different countries."

Intentional homicides by country
Source: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2010
Country Year % homicides with firearms Firearm homicide rate
per 100,000 pop.
Non-firearm homicide rate
per 100,000 pop.
Overall homicide rate
per 100,000
Right to bear arms guaranteed by law. Comment
Australia 2009 11.5 0.13 No
Azerbaijan 2008 6.6 0.12 No
Barbados 2000 40 3.00 4.49 7.49 No
Belarus 2009 2.5 0.12 No
Bulgaria 2008 29.7 0.67 No
Canada 2009 32.0 0.51 No
Chile 2005 37.3 2.16 Yes
Colombia 2010 81.1 27.09 Yes
Costa Rica 2006 57.3 4.59 No
Denmark 2009 31.9 0.27 Yes
England & Wales 2009 6.6 0.07 No
Estonia 2008 3.9 0.24 No
Finland 2009 19.8 0.45 No
Germany 2010 26.3 0.19 Yes
Guatemala 2010 84.0 34.81 Yes
Hong Kong, China (SAR) 2004 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 No
Hungary 2009 5.0 0.07 Yes
India 2009 7.6 0.26 No
Ireland 2008 42.0 0.48 No
Latvia 2009 4.6 0.22 No
Lithuania 2009 2.5 0.18 Yes
Macedonia 2010 62.5 1.21 No
Mexico 2010 54.9 9.97 Yes
Moldova, Republic of 2009 3.3 0.22 Yes
New Zealand 2008 13.5 0.16 No
Paraguay 2009 56.1 7.35 4.70 12.05 Yes
Poland 2009 7.1 0.92 Yes
Portugal 2009 33.8 0.42 Yes
Qatar 2004 16.7 0.14 Yes
Singapore 2006 5.9 0.02 0.90 0.92 No
Slovakia 2006 11.2 0.18 Yes
Slovenia 2009 15.4 0.10 Yes
Spain 2009 21.8 0.20 No
Switzerland 2004 72.2 0.77 Yes
Ukraine 2009 4.5 0.22 Yes
United States 2010 67.5 3.21 Yes
Uruguay 2004 46.5 2.80 Yes
Zimbabwe 2000 66 4.75 2.49 7.24 No

Robbery and assault

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime defines robbery as the theft of property by force or threat of force. Assault is defined as a physical attack against the body of another person resulting in serious bodily injury. In the case of gun violence, the definitions become more specific and include only robbery and assault committed with the use of a firearm. Firearms are used in this threatening capacity four to six times more than firearms used as a means of protection in fighting crime.

In terms of occurrence, developed countries have similar rates of assaults and robberies with firearms, which is a different trend than homicides by firearms.

Costs of violence committed with guns

Violence committed with guns leads to significant monetary costs. Phillip J. Cook estimated that such violence costs the USA $100 billion annually. Emergency medical care is a major contributor to the monetary costs of such violence. It was determined in a study that for every firearm death in the USA for one year from 1 June 1992, an average of three firearm-related injuries were treated in hospital emergency departments. if your child or you think he is violent then take your child to a zicologist!

Psychological costs of violence committed with guns are also clearly documented. James Garbarino found that individuals who experience violence are prone to mental and other health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and sleep deprivation. These problems increase for those who experience violence as children.

See also

References

  1. Carter, Gregg Lee (2002). Guns in American society: an encyclopedia of history, politics, culture, and the law. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO. p. 262. ISBN 1-57607-268-1.
  2. Theodore, Larissa (2008-03-29). "GUNS: A RIGHT OR A SOCIETAL ILL?". Beaver County Times and Allegheny Times. Gun violence by definition is people breaking the law, and drugs are a huge part of it in inner cities...It's not the gun that is causing them to commit the act.
  3. Courtesy link to archive.org copy of Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence: Statistics
  4. <a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)"><a class="ktg6us78hf8vdu7" href="javascript:void(0)">health</a></a>.enotes.com/public-health-encyclopedia/gun-control Encyclopedia of Public Health: Gun Control
  5. Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence: Kids and Gun Violence
  6. "About us," Brady Center to Prevent Violence, undated
  7. "Targeting Criminals, not Gun Owners," NRA-ILA; 8/17/06
  8. ^ "2011 Global Study on Homicide". United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Retrieved 2012-12-18. Cite error: The named reference "unsurvey" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  9. Cook, Philip J., Gun Violence: The Real Cost, Page 29. Oxford University Press, 2002
  10. Committee on Law and Justice (2004). "Executive Summary". Firearms and Violence: A Critical Review. National Academy of Science. ISBN 0-309-09124-1.
  11. Kellermann, A.L., F.P. Rivara, G. Somes; et al. (1992). "Suicide in the home in relation to gun ownership". New England Journal of Medicine. 327 (7): pp. 467–472. doi:10.1056/NEJM199208133270705. PMID 1308093. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Explicit use of et al. in: |author= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. Kellermann, AL, Rivara FP, et al. "Suicide in the Home in Relation to Gun Ownership." NEJM 327:7 (1992):467-472.
  13. Miller, Matthew and Hemenway, David (2001). Firearm Prevalence and the Risk of Suicide: A Review. Harvard Health Policy Review. p. 2. One study found a statistically significant relationship between gun ownership levels and suicide rate across 14 developed nations (e.g. where survey data on gun ownership levels were available), but the association lost its statistical significance when additional countries were included.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. Cook, Philip J., Jens Ludwig (2000). "Chapter 2". Gun Violence: The Real Costs. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-513793-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. Ikeda, Robin M., Rachel Gorwitz, Stephen P. James, Kenneth E. Powell, James A. Mercy (1997). Fatal Firearm Injuries in the United States, 1962-1994: Violence Surveillance Summary Series, No. 3. National Center for Injury and Prevention Control.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. "Suicide in the U.S.A" (PDF). American Association of Suicidology.
  17. Kleck, Gary (2004). "Measures of Gun Ownership Levels of Macro-Level Crime and Violence Research" (PDF). Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency. 41 (1): pp. 3–36. doi:10.1177/0022427803256229. NCJ 203876. Studies that attempt to link the gun ownership of individuals to their experiences as victims (e.g., Kellermann, et al. 1993) do not effectively determine how an individual's risk of victimization is affected by gun ownership by other people, especially those not living in the gun owner's own household. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  18. Lott, John, John E. Whitley (2001). "Safe-Storage Gun Laws: Accidental Deaths, Suicides, and Crime" (PDF). Journal of Law and Economics. 44 (2): pp. 659–689. doi:10.1086/338346. It is frequently assumed that safe-storage laws reduce accidental gun deaths and total suicides. We find no support that safe-storage laws reduce either juvenile accidental gun deaths or suicides. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  19. United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime. "Global Burden of Armed Violence" (PDF).
  20. Federal Bureau of Investigation, "Guns are the weapon of choice", Associated Press, 2011.
  21. "Questionnaire for the Seventh United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems, covering the period 1998 - 2000" (PDF). United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
  22. ^ "The Seventh United Nations Survey on Crime Trends and the Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (1998 - 2000)". United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Retrieved 2008-06-19.
  23. WISQARS Injury Mortality Reports, 1999 - 2005, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  24. Henry E. Schaffer, Don Kates and William B. Waters IV: Public Health Pot Shots--How the CDC succumbed to the Gun "Epidemic." Reason Magazine
  25. Pro-Gun Groups & Anti-Gun Groups--Does Anti-Gun Researcher David Hemenway Have Something To Hide? NRA-ILA, 3/24/06
  26. Australia — Gun Facts, Figures and the Law gunpolicy.org
  27. Guns in Azerbaijan gunpolicy.org
  28. Guns in Barbados gunpolicy.org
  29. Guns in Belarus gunpolicy.org
  30. ^ Gun Laws Comparison gunpolicy.org
  31. Guns in Chile gunpolicy.org
  32. Guns in Denmark gunpolicy.org
  33. NDR: Grundwissen privater Waffenbesitz
  34. Hungarian Weapons Law davekopel.org
  35. Guns in Paraguay gunpolicy.org
  36. Guns in Poland gunpolicy.org
  37. Guns in Portugal gunpolicy.org
  38. Guns in Qatar gunpolicy.org
  39. Guns in Slovakia gunpolicy.org
  40. Guns in Slovenia gunpolicy.org
  41. Guns in Spain gunpolicy.org
  42. Guns in Ukraine gunpolicy.org
  43. Guns in Uruguay gunpolicy.org
  44. "United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Crime Data".
  45. Hemenway, D (2000). "The Relative Frequency of Offensive and Defensive Gun Uses: Results from a National Survey". Violence and Victims. 15 (3): 257–272. PMID 11200101. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  46. ^ Cook, Philip J. (2000). Gun Violence: The Real Costs. Oxford University Press. ISBN ISBN 0-19-513793-0.. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: invalid character (help)
  47. Crime Is Not the Problem: Lethal Violence in America. Oxford University Press. 1997. ISBN 0-19-513105-3. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  48. Annest JL, Mercy JA, et al. "National Estimates of Nonfatal Firearm-Related Injuries: Beyond the Tip of the Iceberg." JAMA 273:22 (1995):1749-1754.
  49. Garbarino, James. "Children, Youth, and Gun Violence: Analysis and Recommendations". Princeton-Brookings.
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