Victims of crime are more likely to own guns, and 60 percent of those who do cite “safety or protection” as the reason to be armed, according to the latest Gallup survey.
A “statistically significant difference” between crime victims and nonvictims own guns, by a margin of 33 percent to 28 percent, said the new survey.
“An obvious explanation is some of those who have been a crime victim purchase a gun as a reaction to that event,” said Gallup.
A firearm in the hands of a good guy is, and will remain, the best safeguard against the often unpredictable behavior of a murderous bad guy https://t.co/hPDOnAuc77
— NRA (@NRA) December 12, 2016
What’s more, those who have a fear of becoming a victim are buying more guns. “Being a crime victim can understandably motivate someone to purchase a gun, but so can the fear of becoming a victim, even for those who have not been victims,” said the survey analysis.
The survey did not ask of crime victims reacted by buying a weapon, but Gallup suggests that is very likely. In several interviews, gun sellers have told Secrets that crime victims and those who fear crime and terrorism are buying more guns.
“We’re seeing a doubling of business across the board,” said Justin Anderson, marketing director of Hyatt Gun Shop in Charlotte, N.C., one of the nation’s largest gun sellers. “It started just after the San Bernardino terrorist attack and has been growing ever since,” he added.
Gallup said that gun owners feel safer.
“In 2013, Gallup asked gun owners why they keep a weapon. The majority, 60 percent, cited personal safety or protection. More broadly, Americans tend to believe that having a gun in the home or carrying concealed weapons would do more to keep people safe than to put them at risk of harm,” said the analysis.
“For crime victims, the threat of victimization is no longer a possibility but a reality. Crime victims’ desire to protect themselves may explain why many gun owners do not favor stricter gun laws, and why gun owners as well as nonowners are reluctant to back outright bans on guns,” it added.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected]
