Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Study Reinforces What We Already Know: Criminals Don’t Follow the Law

Friday, June 28, 2019

Study Reinforces What We Already Know: Criminals Don’t Follow the Law

The state of Illinois holds a B+ rating from the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence (the highest rating given is an A). Gun control advocates would have you believe this means it should be a relatively safe place.

Yet Illinois’ largest city, Chicago, has long been an embarrassment to this notion. The city if anything has had an even lengthier list of gun controls than the state itself, but it has also seen years of terribly high rates of violent crime.

Crime in Chicago looks to be on a downward trend, thankfully, but it’s not clear gun control has had anything to do with this. Policing strategies and community involvement are more likely contributing factors. Programs like Cure Violence have made an impact in Chicago in the past.

But much of the research focus remains on guns.

A new study led by Dr. Philip J. Cook of Duke University, for example, looks at the duration of the “last link – the elapsed time from the transaction that actually provided the offender with the gun in question.” Cook and his co-authors surveyed 221 people convicted of firearm-related offenses in Chicago incarcerated in state prisons about the gun they had at the time of their crime.

The media coverage of this study has fixated on several findings. “More than two-thirds of the men obtained their primary gun within the last six months of their arrest (68%), while 19.3% possessed their gun for five or fewer days. Almost a quarter of respondents (22.6%) had never owned a gun six months before their current arrest. Of those who had, a majority acquired their primary gun—the one they possessed during their arrest—through a purchase or trade (54.3%) and from a friend or acquaintance (56.9%).”

These discoveries are an interesting contribution to the body of knowledge regarding criminal behavior, but an even more important detail is reported by Stephen Gutowski at the Washington Free Beacon: “The CIS respondents were almost all barred from purchasing a gun from a gun store because of their prior criminal record—as a result, their guns were obtained by illegal transactions with friends, relatives, and the underground market.”

In other words, while the lengthy list of gun control laws in Illinois and Chicago ensured the subjects’ behavior was illegal, it did nothing to actually prevent that behavior.

The study’s authors conclude that “more effective enforcement of the laws governing gun transactions may have a quick and pervasive effect on gun use in crime.”

And perhaps they’re right.

But the point Gutowski raises about the illegal nature of the transactions underscores that simply adding additional laws to the books will not deter the sorts of armed activity that end with people going to prison.

We can thank Dr. Cook, in other words, for once again reinforcing what we already know: criminals don’t follow the law.

IN THIS ARTICLE
Illinois crime
TRENDING NOW
Michigan: Anti-Gun Legislation Passed in the Middle of the Night Heads To Governor’s Desk

Friday, December 20, 2024

Michigan: Anti-Gun Legislation Passed in the Middle of the Night Heads To Governor’s Desk

With the sun setting on the 2023-2024 legislative session, yesterday the Michigan Senate held a marathon session lasting over 24 hours. While citizens were sleeping, anti-gun lawmakers were able to pass two pieces of legislation, ...

Guide To The Interstate Transportation Of Firearms

Gun Laws  

Thursday, January 1, 2015

Guide To The Interstate Transportation Of Firearms

CAUTION: Federal and state firearms laws are subject to frequent change. This summary is not to be considered as legal advice or a restatement of law.

Shocker! Joe Biden Exercises Presidential Authority to Expand Access to Firearms

News  

Monday, December 23, 2024

Shocker! Joe Biden Exercises Presidential Authority to Expand Access to Firearms

No, that is not a headline from a satirical news site. Indeed, it may come as a surprise to many (and perhaps even to the man himself), but Joe Biden has in two short days ...

U.S. Supreme Court Lets Hawaii Off With a Warning … For Now

News  

Monday, December 23, 2024

U.S. Supreme Court Lets Hawaii Off With a Warning … For Now

Last February, we reported on the judicial equivalent of a temper tantrum emanating from the Hawaii Supreme Court over the U.S. Supreme Court’s Second Amendment jurisprudence. 

Here We Go Again: Anti-gun States Simultaneously Sue Law-Abiding Gunmaker

News  

Friday, December 13, 2024

Here We Go Again: Anti-gun States Simultaneously Sue Law-Abiding Gunmaker

Last week, the anti-gun attorneys general of Minnesota and New Jersey filed nearly simultaneous lawsuits against firearm maker Glock, essentially claiming the company was violating the laws of those states by making guns that are too easy to illegally ...

Concealed Carry Permit, Gun Sale Numbers Stay Strong in 2024

News  

Monday, December 16, 2024

Concealed Carry Permit, Gun Sale Numbers Stay Strong in 2024

The Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) has released the latest in its series of annual reports on trends in concealed carry permits in America.

North Dakota: State Supreme Court Strikes Down Home Firearms Sales Ban in Fargo

Monday, December 23, 2024

North Dakota: State Supreme Court Strikes Down Home Firearms Sales Ban in Fargo

On Thursday, December 19th, the North Dakota Supreme Court upheld a lower court decision to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the city of Fargo against the state legislature to block House Bill 1340, a bill passed in ...

Gun Control Activists Cite “Loopholes” in CEO’s Murder, Ignore Facts and Law

News  

Monday, December 16, 2024

Gun Control Activists Cite “Loopholes” in CEO’s Murder, Ignore Facts and Law

Predictably, gun control activists are citing the cold-blooded Manhattan murder of health insurance executive Brian Thompson to call for more gun control, particularly in the hot-button areas of “ghost guns” and “3D printed firearms.” 

Michigan: Final Push to Limit Gun Rights as Session Clock Runs Down

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Michigan: Final Push to Limit Gun Rights as Session Clock Runs Down

With only a few days left in the session, anti-gun legislators are doing everything they can to pass additional legislation restricting the Second Amendment rights of Michigan citizens. The legislation below could be taken up ...

NYC Subway More Dangerous Than the Gridiron?

News  

Monday, December 16, 2024

NYC Subway More Dangerous Than the Gridiron?

Violent crime in New York City has been a growing concern over the last few years.  

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.