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Promoting Firearms Safety

Promoting Firearms Safety. Mark Barnes Attorney at Law. A Question of Resources. Firearms safety ultimately depends on users’ compliance with safe practices We know what to do: Safe handling of weapons Safe storage Limiting access to children Invoking a spirit of seriousness and care

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Promoting Firearms Safety

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  1. Promoting Firearms Safety Mark Barnes Attorney at Law

  2. A Question of Resources • Firearms safety ultimately depends on users’ compliance with safe practices • We know what to do: • Safe handling of weapons • Safe storage • Limiting access to children • Invoking a spirit of seriousness and care • The question is: How can we promote these practices?

  3. Parts of the Talk • The context of safety—understanding the amount of risk • What research shows is effective • Mobilizing people for safe use • The road ahead

  4. The Context • Regulatory regimes reflect societies’ expectations and political compacts • Different countries approach personal responsibility differently • What we can do is to promote safe use through education and information • This is needed regardless of the regulatory regime

  5. Understanding the Risks • Safety depends on clearly understanding that risks depend on intent • Crime and mental illness are real social and personal problems—but these problems can’t be solved by focusing only on guns • Safe and appropriate use of guns grows out of users taking the right approach

  6. The US Experience • Local control over many aspects of gun use • Safe use is largely achieved, as the next slides will show • Problems grow out of crime and mental illness—not safety • But, safety is important

  7. Sources of Information • Death certificates • Health care use—hospitals, emergency rooms, physicians offices • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention compiles the data • Facts about the size of the risks are important because of costs of action—to people and the society

  8. Impact of Injuries • The next 2 slides show the leading causes of injuries in the US in 2001 as compiled by the CDC • Unsafe use of guns does not appear on either chart

  9. Firearms Injuries*: 2002 • 0.3% of all Injuries • 0.1% of Accidental Injuries • 2.9% of Injuries from Crimes • 1.6% of Injuries from Police Enforcement • 5.7% of Self inflicted Injuries Source: CDC Wisqars *Including both those that resulted in Death and those that resulted in Injury requiring medical care

  10. Firearms Accidents: 2002 • 18,341 out of 26,466,238 Accidents [0.1%] • 762 out of 106,742 Fatal Accidents [0.7%]

  11. Accidents are Rare • Every accident is bad and fatal ones are tragic • In 2002, there was one firearms accident in the US for every 11 thousand guns • Resulting in one accidental death for every 260 thousand guns • Compare this to one motor vehicle accidental injury for every 77 vehicles • And one accidental death for every 5 thousand vehicles

  12. What Research Shows • Unclear if regulations work • Education does work • Education takes fewer social and fiscal resources • Demographic differences in safety

  13. A Natural Social Experiment • The US legal system provides a perfect setting to test the effect of different approaches • Actually we have at least 52 legal regimes • Federal Law • 50 State Laws plus • The District of Columbia • Numerous local laws as well

  14. Looking Across the States • Numerous studies have traced the effect of rules or laws on safety • Bottom line is : there is very little effect • Need to find another way to encourage safety • Promoting awareness • Promote good practices • Train people to actually do the right thing

  15. Taskforce on Community Preventive Services • Organized by CDC • Consisted of Leading Physicians and Scientists • Examined to prevent violence • Concluded that there is “insufficient evidence” to say that laws restricting firearms reduce injuries and cut violence. • Source: MMWR October 3, 2003 52(RR14)

  16. What the Taskforce Did • Reviewed studies that tried to show there was a connection between laws and reduced violence • Identified 51 studies • Looked at several types of legal interventions—such as bans, waiting periods, registration, licensing, and concealed weapon carry laws.

  17. Taskforce Conclusion • They found that these studies “resulted in inconsistent and otherwise insufficient evidence with which to determine the effectiveness of firearms laws in modifying violent outcomes.” • In other words, there is no good evidence that stricter laws solve the problem

  18. National Academy of Sciences Panel • In 2005 panel of experts • Looked at gun violence studies • Conclusion: “current research suggests that demand-side enforcement done carefully and with community support is the best approach to reducing gun violence.”

  19. Risky Life-styles and Unintentional Firearms Fatalities • Study of factors that lead to firearms accidental fatalities in US states • Authors looked at the correlates of these deaths and other kinds of risks • Controlled results with advanced statistical procedures that attribute the amount of effect due to various forces • They concluded that firearms death correlate with other risky behaviors

  20. Findings of Risky Behavior Study • The conditions that lead to firearms accidents are “not characteristically different from other types of unintentional injuries” • States which have high alcohol use, smoking, STDs, and teenage births also have higher firearms accidents

  21. Implications of the Risky Behaviors Study • Changing attitudes towards these risks and actual behavior is the key • Source: Rick Ruddell and Larry Mays, California Journal of Health Promotion, 2004. Vol 2 issue 4 49-64.

  22. What can be done? Does the research show us any methods that really work?

  23. Building Awareness • Teaching children about the dangers and appropriate reaction to finding a gun • NRA Eddie Eagle Program • Stop • Do not touch • Leave the area • Tell an adult

  24. Studies Show it works • Builds awareness • Pediatric Emergency Care. Patricia Howard, Ph.D. RN • Randomized test in a controlled setting • “children do retain firearm safety training.”

  25. Need for Behavioral Skills Training • Building awareness and knowledge is not enough • Adults and children need to actually change what they do • New training procedures can achieve this by : • Modeling appropriate behavior • Rehearsing it • Realistic testing and reinforcement • Source: Michael B. Himple. Preventing unintentional firearm injury in Children: the need for behavioral skills training. Education and Treatment of Children May 2004

  26. A Common Effort • Recognizing differences in regulatory approaches • Getting beyond regulation to actual practices • Taking action against those who commit intentional violent acts • Providing mental health services • Encouraging awareness and responsible behavior

  27. How transferable is any of this? • Different countries/ different approaches • The critical need for testing, information and research

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