A roundup of illegal guns in Washington, D.C. proves telling

Hotair.com ^ | 1-18-17 | Jazz Shaw

[DeweyCA]

(Skip)

Back in 2015 we had a similar discussion after Joe Scarborough did an interview where he pointed out that only a tiny fraction of guns used in crimes were purchased legally. (Skip) There have been some studies that peg the number at around three percent, which is the one Scarborough quoted. Others have put it as high as 11% but that seems to be an outlier. It’s a difficult problem to put an exact figure on, but the general consensus is that somewhere between three and eight percent of gun crimes are committed with legally purchased and owned firearms.

I could have helped them out with that discussion if they’d gone back to read my article, The truth about gun deaths: numbers and actual solutions. (Skip) The three to eight percent number is generally agreed on and – an important point to remember – of those legally owned firearms used in crimes, a big chunk of them turn out to be domestic violence incidents which take place in the home. Your average gang member or aspiring career criminal out on the streets quickly builds up a rap sheet and they simply don’t qualify to purchase guns legally. The one survey of prisoners referenced in that article shows that almost all of the participants convicted of gun crimes either stole the weapons themselves or purchased them on the black market or through illegal straw purchasers.

(Skip) They [the DC police] are finding a relatively huge number of guns considering that D.C. has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the nation. And pretty much all of those guns were obtained illegally. Keep that in mind next time you talk to someone pushing for more background checks and tougher restrictions on legal firearms purchases.

[DeweyCA]

Contains nice stats about the fact that only 3% - 8% of crimes are committed with legally purchased guns. And many of those crimes were domestic violence, so they weren't out in the general public. The real problem is illegally purchased guns that are bought by criminals. The problem is NOT legally purchased guns in the hands of good citizens.

[hadaclueonce]

You mean, a majority are breaking the law?

We need one more law to make it illegal to break an existing law.

That will fix it.

[Noumenon]

Actually it’s a majority of minorities...

As usual.

[rjsimmon]

Do they distinguish between guns used in crimes that are used AGAINST the criminal?

[InABunkerUnderSF]

One of the weapons, “A black 9mm Vis 35 Radom in the 4300 block of Brooks Street, Northeast” is a Polish version of the Browning High Power made before WWII. Probably a Nazi capture and some GI’s bring back. I’d love to have it in my collection. Unfortunately it’s probably going to end up as a man hole cover. Sad.

[Hugh the Scot]

Reduce DWI by making it harder for sober people to drive...