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Very few victims draw a weapon in their own defense when under attack. One of the most controversial aspects of using a gun as a means of protection concerns how often it actually happens. How many persons under attack draw their own weapons and fight back? Advocates of guns for self-protection routinely circulate claims that […]

There are far too many guns in circulation already. Fur- ther production and purchases by fearful people should be discouraged and restricted in order to improve public safety. Estimates differ over how many guns are in the hands of private citizens (excluding members of the armed forces and law enforcement agencies) and how many people

Arguments Advanced by Proponents of Arming for Self-Protection 1) Reaching for a gun can save a victim’s life Gun ownership advocates consider keeping a firearm at home or at work (especially in stores) as well as routinely carrying around a legally registered concealed handgun to be a rational and reasonable means of protecting an individual

What Armed Citizens Under Attack Must Consider Before Pulling the Trigger Some issues that armed citizens who find themselves under attack must grapple with before they open fire were raised in a book review in the official publication of the National Rifle Association: 1) Be reasonable In all states, a claim of self-defense in the

Would Victims Be Better Off if They Were Armed? People buy firearms for a number of reasons: to collect them, to use them for target practice and sport shooting, to hunt game, and for self- protection. Gun culture is deeply rooted in the American experience, beginning with the day the first settlers arrived to clear

TOWARD COUNTERING CRIMINAL VIOLENCE WITH FORCEFUL RESPONSES The Legitimate Use of Force in Self-Defense A sixth-grader is going door to door, selling chocolates for a school fundraiser. A man sitting on his porch agrees to buy some candy and invites the girl inside while he gets some money. But then he whips out a knife

Writing and Rewriting the Law So That Crime Does not Pay In 1977, the New York State legislature passed a forfeiture of assets bill to prevent a vicious serial killer (cited in the first example above) from being showered with lucrative offers for book contracts, movie rights, and paid appearances to tell his inside story.

CONFISCATING PROFITS FROM NOTORIOUS CRIMINALS Six people are shot dead in ambushes and many others are wounded by a lone gunman who describes himself in letters to a journalist and notes left at crime scenes as a monster who is being driven by demons communicating through dogs to kill young women . Dubbed the “Son

Monitoring and Evaluating Compensation Programs Many arguments about the rightness of compensa- tion hinge on judgments about the type of financial help victims require and on assumptions about the ability of programs to meet these needs. Because many states have operated programs for several dec- ades, a substantial body of data is available for anal-

How Programs Operate: Similarities and Differences In all states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the ques- tion of whether to compensate victims has been answered for the time being. But the programs vary in many ways, reflecting the diversity in the traditions, populations, crime rates, and resources