by Sam Jacobs, The Burning Platform:
According to recent surveys, 81% of gun owners and 57% of non-gun owners feel safer with a firearm in the home. However, there is much debate about whether this is rooted in evidence.
The two greatest concerns about whether a firearm in the home keeps people safe are unintentional shootings and domestic violence. Let’s look at some stats.
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- There are at least 49 million households with firearms in the United States.
- 21 states have safe storage laws where a homeowner can be punished for having unsecured firearms in the home or if a prohibited person accesses one in the home.
- 55% of homicides where the victim dies at home are firearm-related.
- 0.002% of children who were in a home with a loaded and unsecured firearm were killed in an accidental shooting incident in 2022.
- While femicide is a common concern for the gun control lobby, 40% of females aged 15+ were murdered by something other than a bullet in 2022.
- Of the 49 million homes in the U.S. with a firearm, only 7,492 homicide incidents were recorded in a home during 2022 (all methods).
Note: Simply possessing a firearm isn’t enough to keep one safe. The ability to use it effectively and the willingness to protect innocent lives are the determining factors.
Our sources are listed here.
Unintentional Shootings
One of the main concerns of having a firearm in the home is that it may increase the chances of an accidental shooting incident.
- Four in ten U.S. households have at least one firearm (123 million households > 49 million with firearms)
- 4.6 million children are living in homes with unsecured firearms, and surveys indicate that only 44% of gun owners keep firearms secured in the home. However, unintentional shootings are quite rare.
- There are an average of 623 accidental shootings per year, resulting in 461 deaths (all ages).
- On average, 100 adolescents (<1-17) are killed in accidental shooting accidents nationally.
Domestic Violence
You’ve likely heard having a gun in the home means you’re more likely to be shot during a violent altercation. However, after looking at the stats, that’s not the case.
Of 17,215 homicides recorded by the FBI in 2022, only 15% were committed by a family member or domestic partner. Abusers often use other means to kill their victims, and women are less likely to personally own a firearm for defensive use than men.
Between 2003 and 2012, a firearm was used in only 3.7% of domestic violence incidents compared to 10.7% of incidents where a stranger was the aggressor.
Studies indicate that 77% of domestic violence incidents occur at or near the home, and 1.1% were classified as Serious Violent Crimes. Intimate partner violence increases after leaving the home: 44.7% of intimate partner violence occurred during a separation, and 11.4% occurred after a divorce.
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