Gun Facts | Gun Control Facts Concerning Assault Weapons
Myth: Assault weapons are a serious problem in the U.S.
Fact: In 1994, before the Federal “assault weapons ban,” you were eleven (11) times more likely to be beaten to death than to be killed by an “assault weapon.”
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Fact: In the first 17 years since the ban was lifted, murders declined 43%, violent crime 43%, rapes 27% and robberies 49%.
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Fact: Nationally, “assault weapons” were used in 1.4% of crimes involving firearms and 0.25% of all violent crime before the enactment of any national or state “assault weapons” ban. In many major urban areas (San Antonio, Mobile, Nashville, etc.) and some entire states (Maryland, New Jersey, etc.) the rate is less than 0.1%.
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Fact: Even weapons misclassified as “assault weapons” (common in the former Federal and California “assault weapons” confiscations) are used in less than 1% of all homicides.
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Fact: Police reports show that “assault weapons” are a non-problem:
For California:
- Los Angeles: In 1998, of 538 documented gun incidents, only one (0.2%) involved an “assault weapon.”
- San Francisco: In 1998, only 2.2% of confiscated weapons were “assault weapons.”
- San Diego: Between 1988 and 1990, only 0.3% of confiscated weapons were “assault weapons.”
- “I surveyed the firearms used in violent crimes…assault-type firearms were the least of our worries.” 7
For the rest of the nation:
- Between 1980 and 1994, only 2% of confiscated guns were “assault weapons.” 8
- Just under 2% of criminals that commit violent crimes used “assault weapons.” 9
Fact: Only 1.4% of recovered crime weapons are models covered under the 1994 “assault weapons” ban.
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Fact: In Virginia, no surveyed inmates had carried an “assault weapon” during the commission of their last crime, despite 20% admitting that they had previously owned such weapons.
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Fact: Most “assault weapons” have no more firepower or killing capacity than the average hunting rifle and “play a small role in overall violent crime.”
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Fact: Even the government agrees. “… the weapons banned by this legislation [1994 Federal Assault Weapons ban – since repealed] were used only rarely in gun crimes.”
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