Can firearm purchase records help prevent mass shootings?

(SACREMENTO)

The rise in gun violence in the United States has led law enforcement and others to find ways to reduce it. There were 647 mass shootings in 2022, compared to 383 in 2016. Also between 2000 and 2016, the number of active shootings tripled. They are defined as “one or more persons actively involved in a murder or attempted murder”. person in the village.

A first-of-its-kind study examining gun purchase records in California found that mass and active shooters have different gun buying patterns compared to other legitimate buyers. The UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program (VPRP) study was published in the Journal of Criminal Justice.

“Efforts to develop tools to predict who will commit violence have not lived up to expectations,” said Liz Tomsich, research data analyst at VPRP and first author of the study. “These new data on the pre-attack behavior of mass and active shooters suggest that purchase histories may merit further study to prevent mass shootings.”

Methods

The researchers used public databases to identify active and massive California shooters who carried out attacks between 1985 and 2018.

A criminal analyst with the California Department of Justice collated media reports, as well as crime and transaction histories, to compile an investigation for each mass and active shooter.

Using research, the researchers linked the shooters who committed the attacks between 1996 and 2018 to the California Department of Justice database of dealer sales records. Because of this, they were able to identify shooters with a history of authorized transactions.

The database contains information on all authorized firearm purchasers and transactions in the state since 1985, with detailed transaction data beginning in 1996.

More complete data since 1996 has allowed the researchers to compare the firearm acquisition histories of mass and active shooters with those of other authorized purchasers on a range of factors.

In addition, the study examined factors associated with firearms acquired closer to the date of the attack among a group of California individuals who committed mass or active shootings between 1985 and 2018. They were analyzed to see if they had a record of legal purchase.

Liz Tomsic

This new data on the pre-attack behavior of mass and active shooters suggests that purchase histories may merit further study to prevent mass shootings.” Liz Tomsich, Research Data Analyst, UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program

Results

Researchers have identified several different patterns of gun buying by buyers who subsequently carried out mass shootings. Compared to other legitimate gun buyers, mass and active shooters who attacked between 1996 and 2018 and had a history of authorized purchases:

  • bought more pistols in the year before the attack
  • bought their first gun at an older age
  • were more likely to have a history of purchase refusals

Some buying patterns involve planning ahead of an attack and wanting to have a firearm purchase record that would be harder to trace. An analysis of California individuals who committed mass or active shootings between 1985 and 2018 found that firearms acquired closer to the date of the attack were more likely to:

  • long guns
  • used during attack
  • bought out of state
  • illegally acquired, even from some mass and active shooters who were not prohibited from buying weapons at the time of purchase

Restrictions

The researchers noted that the study had limitations. The sample size of 22 bulk and active shooters in the case-control analysis was small, which limited their ability to consider multiple independent variables.

The researchers were also limited by the information available in the databases. More detailed data on dealer sales transactions began in 1996, with the exception of a case-control analysis of shooters who committed attacks prior to 1996.

The team was also unable to examine long gun characteristics and acquisition patterns in a case-control analysis. Researchers did not always have detailed histories of unauthorized weapon acquisitions.

“The results give us insight into the behavior of mass and active shooters,” said Hannah S. Lucker, assistant professor of emergency medicine and senior author of the study. “Future research may help determine whether capture patterns that characterize mass and active shooters can be used, in conjunction with other indicators of pre-attack planning, to elicit a response from law enforcement and other intervention professionals.”

Additional contributors include Andrew Crawford, Chris D. McCourt, and Garen Wintemute of the VPRP and the California Gun Violence Research Center.

Financing

This study was supported by the National Institute of Justice (Award #2018-75-CX-0026) and the California Center for the Study of Gun Violence.

Resources

The UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program (VPRP) is an interdisciplinary research and policy development program focused on understanding the causes, consequences, and prevention of violence. Research evaluates gun violence, the social conditions underlying violence, and the relationship between violence, substance abuse, and mental illness. VPRP is home to the University of California Gun Violence Research Center, which opened in 2017 with a $5 million grant from the State of California to conduct cutting-edge research on gun violence and its prevention. For more information, visit health.ucdavis.edu/vprp/.

Content Source

California Press News – Latest News:
Los Angeles Local News || Bay Area Local News || California News || Lifestyle News || National news || Travel News || Health News

Related Articles

Back to top button