Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

Tennessee Gun Control Group Spreads Bad Data to Push Anti-gun Agenda

Friday, September 30, 2016

Tennessee Gun Control Group Spreads Bad Data to Push Anti-gun Agenda

In mid-September, Tennessee gun control group Safe Tennessee Project trumpeted a disturbing new statistic gleaned from the Centers for Disease Control’s Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) in order to bolster their anti-gun agenda. The group contended that in 2014, 105 Tennesseans were killed in unintentional shootings, a more than five-fold increase from 2013. As expected, the press dutifully parroted the group’s claims. However, the incredible statistic touted by Safe Tennessee Project turned out to be just that, not credible. Following a review of their data, the Tennessee Department of Health, who provided the unintentional shooting data to the CDC, determined that the 105 figure was inaccurate and that the correct number of unintentional shooting deaths in Tennessee in 2014 was five.

On September 13, Safe Tennessee Project published an item on their website titled, “Tennessee Now Leads Nation in Fatal Unintentional Shootings.” The article reported that CDC data showed that there were 105 unintentional firearm fatalities in Tennessee in 2015, and noted that this was a marked increase from the previous five years, in which the total number of unintentional firearms deaths ranged from 19-32. As the article’s headline suggests, Safe Tennessee Project claimed that this drastic increase made Tennessee the national leader in unintentional firearm fatalities.

Safe Tennessee Project was quick to blame the Volunteer State’s gun laws for the alleged increase in unintentional firearm fatalities. The item quoted Safe Tennessee Project Research Director Jonathan M. Metzl, who stated, “The dramatic jump in unintentional shootings deaths in our state is a cause for alarm and a call to action… Legislation could make such effective strategies as gun-safety locks, smart guns, or gun safes as common as seat belts are in cars. This data truly should be a wake-up call for lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.”

Uncritical news outlets were quick to repeat Safe Tennessee Project’s claims about unintentional firearm fatalities. The Associated Press distinguished itself with a particularly careless piece that was little more than a rewrite of Safe Tennessee Project’s article.

In their article reporting the increase, Safe Tennessee Project, seemed to acknowledge their own skepticism concerning the accuracy of the initial 2014 unintentional firearm fatalities number. Safe Tennessee Project Policy Director Beth Joslin Roth noted, “We’ve actually been aware of the new numbers for several months, but the increase was so dramatic that we wanted to confirm the numbers before reporting them.” The group claims that it contacted the CDC and the Tennessee Department of Public Health to confirm the suspect 2014 unintentional firearm fatality figure before using it.

Whatever steps Safe Tennessee Project may or may not have taken to confirm the ridiculous Tennessee unintentional firearms fatality number, their efforts proved woefully inadequate. On September 22, The Tennessee Department of Public Health issued a press release which announced that “Incorrect data provided earlier indicated the number of accidental gunshot deaths had dramatically escalated from 19 in 2013 to 105 in 2014.” Further, the release noted, “After manually reviewing death certificates, TDH reports five people died from accidental gunshot wounds in the state in 2014.” The release also contained a listing of Tennessee unintentional firearm fatality totals for each year since 1999; 2014’s total was the lowest listed.

The Tennessee Department of Public Health’s determination of five unintended firearm fatalities in the state in 2014 significantly undermines the anti-gun narrative that Safe Tennessee Project sought to create using the erroneous statistic. For instance, to illustrate Tennessee’s supposed problem with fatal unintentional shooting deaths, Safe Tennessee Project constructed a graph showing the state’s rate of unintentional firearms fatalities per 100,000 in 2014 versus those of the next four highest states. Using the corrected data, Tennessee’s rate of unintentional firearm fatalities is far below these other states, which include Massachusetts, a state with the type of severe firearms storage requirements that Safe Tennessee Project seeks to impose.

Moreover, the Safe Tennessee Project article quotes Metzl as stating, “Nationally, unintended shooting rates tend to rise most dramatically in states that allow the easiest access to firearms, and in instances where safe-storage practices are not observed.” Back in reality, the unintentional firearm fatality rate does not tend to rise at all, but rather to decrease. Since 1903, there has been a 94 percent decrease in the rate of fatal firearm accidents. From 1994 to 2014 the rate of unintentional firearm fatalities dropped by more than half. During this time period NRA has worked to educate millions of Americans in the safe use of firearms.

Following the Tennessee Department of Public Health’s correction of the unintentional firearm fatality data, Safe Tennessee Project acknowledged the inaccuracy of their article. However, the group’s eagerness to use plainly suspect data to push their political agenda should inform the public and legislators as to the legitimacy of their work. Further, this episode should stand as yet one more reminder of much of the media’s willingness to indiscriminately report on the contentions of any group that shares their anti-gun prejudice.

BY NRA-ILA Staff

TRENDING NOW
Major Digital Currency’s Terms of Use Prohibit Firearm and Ammunition Sales

News  

Monday, October 20, 2025

Major Digital Currency’s Terms of Use Prohibit Firearm and Ammunition Sales

So much of the energy surrounding the digital currency space has been aimed at bringing forth a new liberty. 

David Hogg: “The Grift that Keeps on Grifting”

News  

Monday, October 20, 2025

David Hogg: “The Grift that Keeps on Grifting”

At this point, anybody who reads NRA-ILA’s Grassroots Alerts even sporadically is well aware of the shameless, anti-gun self-promoter David Hogg. 

Urban Crime Spike “the Most Overlooked U.S. Crime Story in Recent Years”

News  

Monday, October 20, 2025

Urban Crime Spike “the Most Overlooked U.S. Crime Story in Recent Years”

It was a standard talking point of the Biden White House that violent crime had dropped by record levels under the Biden-Harris administration, attributed in part to its support of gun control measures.

First Affirmative Lawsuit in Support of Gun Owners Filed by Trump’s DOJ

News  

Monday, October 6, 2025

First Affirmative Lawsuit in Support of Gun Owners Filed by Trump’s DOJ

California officials’ egregious foot-dragging over the issuance of carry permits has finally attracted the ire of the federal Department of Justice (DOJ). 

NRA Files Lawsuit Challenging California’s Glock Ban

Monday, October 13, 2025

NRA Files Lawsuit Challenging California’s Glock Ban

Today, the National Rifle Association—along with Firearms Policy Coalition, Second Amendment Foundation, Poway Weapons & Gear, and two NRA members—filed a lawsuit challenging California’s Glock ban.

North Carolina: Update on Permitless Carry

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

North Carolina: Update on Permitless Carry

Last week the North Carolina General Assembly briefly returned from recess and re-referred Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to the House Rules Committee.

Colorado Joins States in Promoting Use of Red Flag Laws

News  

Monday, October 20, 2025

Colorado Joins States in Promoting Use of Red Flag Laws

First there were the red flag laws themselves, dangerous laws allowing for the seizure of firearms while bypassing a citizen’s right to due process. 

California: Governor Newsom Signs Gun Control Bills Into Law

Monday, October 13, 2025

California: Governor Newsom Signs Gun Control Bills Into Law

For someone who has claimed to be"...deeply mindful and respectful of the Second Amendment and people’s Constitutional rights,” Governor Gavin Newsom has once again proven that actions speak louder than words.

FBI Persists in Underreporting Armed Citizen Defensive Gun Use

News  

Monday, October 13, 2025

FBI Persists in Underreporting Armed Citizen Defensive Gun Use

Three years ago, Dr. John Lott of the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC), writing for RealClearInvestigations, described how the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was vastly undercounting, “by an order of more than three the number of instances in ...

NRA Files Another Lawsuit Challenging the National Firearms Act

Thursday, October 9, 2025

NRA Files Another Lawsuit Challenging the National Firearms Act

Today, the National Rifle Association—along with the American Suppressor Association, Firearms Policy Coalition, and Second Amendment Foundation—announced the filing of another lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA).

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.