Report shows that the 10 States with Weakest Gun Laws Collectively Have 3 Times More Gun Violence than the 10 States with the Strongest Gun Laws
Washington, D.C. — A new Center for American Progress report released today has found that Nevada ranks 11th in the nation for the overall rate of gun violence. Nevada also ranked particularly high in a few individual categories of gun violence, ranking third in the nation for the rate of women killed by intimate partners using guns and fifth for rates of gun-related suicide. The Center for American Progress has also published an interactive map that links to state specific fact sheets providing detailed information about gun violence in Nevada.
The report analyzes 10 specific indicators of gun violence in all 50 states and found that the 10 states with the weakest gun laws collectively have levels of gun violence that are more than three times higher than the 10 states with the strongest gun laws.
“There is an unquestionable link between the strength of Nevada’s gun laws and the rates of gun violence in the state,” said Chelsea Parsons, Vice President for Guns and Crime Policy at CAP. “While strong gun laws are certainly not the only factor impacting levels of gun violence, it is undeniable that Americans in states with stronger gun laws are safer from gun violence than those in states with weaker laws. Lawmakers in Nevada should strongly consider strengthening gun laws in order to reduce gun deaths and make all of Nevada’s communities safer.
The report looks at 10 critical indicators of gun violence in the United States, including overall gun deaths; gun suicides, homicides and accidents; mass shootings; intimate partner gun homicides of women; gun deaths of people younger than age 21; law enforcement feloniously killed with a gun; fatal shootings by police; and the rate at which crime guns are exported. By comparing the data from all 50 states to the corresponding grade from the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence’s “2015 State Law Scorecard”—which rates the strength of state gun laws—the report found a striking correlation between the strength of a state’s gun laws and the rates of gun violence in that state.
“Nevada consistently ranks at the bottom of every good list and the top of every bad list,” said Annette Magnus of Battle Born Progress. “As we can see with this new report, Nevada must do more to strengthen our gun laws in our state. As a gun owner and native Nevadan, I believe we can and must do more to ensure that guns are not falling into the wrong hands. We call on all our elected leaders in Nevada to consider policies in our next legislative session that will help us do better on this critical issue. Lives in our state literally depend on it.”
The report offers commonsense recommendations that policymakers in Nevada should consider to reduce gun violence, including closing the private sale loophole and requiring background checks for all gun sales, prohibiting domestic abusers and stalkers from gun possession, banning or more strictly regulating assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, and investing in community-based violence prevention programs.
Click here to read the report.
View an interactive map.
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Tom Caiazza at [email protected] or 202.481.7141.