CAGV GUN FACTS

In 2004, there were 29,569 gun-related deaths - 81 people each day; 173 of those killed were in Connecticut - 1 person every 2.1 days. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. WISQARS. www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars

Firearms are used in over 2,000 crimes every year in Connecticut. Crime in CT, Annual Report of the Uniform Crime Reporting Program, State of Connecticut Department of Public Safety, Division of State Police, Crimes Analysis Unit, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000.

African Americans comprise approximately 9% of CT's population, but account for 37% of all firearm-related injuries treated in hospitals. CHIMEData Fact Sheet, "Firearm Injuries in CT", CT Hospital Association, June, 2005, p. 1.

In CT, direct hospital costs associated with treating firearms-related injuries totaled $7,661,586 in FY 2004. This does not include any additional costs, i.e. long-term care, rehab, home health aides or other expenses that may occur over a lifetime as a result of a firearm injury. CHIMEData Fact Sheet, "Firearm Injuries in CT", CT Hospital Association, June, 2005, p. 1.

Nearly 70% of all CT firearm-related injury victims were either uninsured or covered by Medicaid. CHIMEData Fact Sheet, "Firearm Injuries in CT", CT Hospital Association, June, 2005, p. 1.

Suicide is the leading cause of gun death both in the US (57%) & in Connecticut (58%). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. WISQARS.

In Connecticut in 2004, 82 percent of firearms suicide victims were white males over 30. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. WISQARS.

In CT, 60% of murders are committed by firearms; 15% are by knife, 25% are all other methods. Injury Prevention Center, CT Children's Medical Center, CT Violent Injury Statistics System 2004 Report, p. 13.

In Connecticut in 2004, 90% of firearms homicide victims were males. The firearms homicide rate for African American males was 8 times higher than that for white males, and 3.5 times higher for Latino males than for white males. Injury Prevention Center, CT Children's Medical Center, CT Violent Injury Statistics System 2004 Report, p. 9.

In CT, for every 10 people killed in a homicide, at least 5 are killed by someone they know; only 1 is killed by stranger. Crime in CT, Annual Report of the Uniform Crime Reporting Program, State of Connecticut Department of Public Safety, Division of State Police, Crimes Analysis Unit, 2004, 2003, 2002.

In CT, 23% of small-city 9th and 10th graders and 15% of affluent suburban 9th and 10th graders said that it would be sort of easy or very easy to get a gun. Canny, Priscilla F. & Michelle Beaulieu Cooke, The State of Connecticut's Youth, 2003: Data, Outcomes and Indicators; Connecticut Voices for Children, p. 37.

A 2005 survey of CT students reported that 16% carried a weapon, such as a gun, knife, or club on one or more of the past 30 days. CT Dept. of Public Health, Connecticut School Health Survey

From 1999-2000, 1,609 CT firearms were reported stolen. There is no way to know how many others might have been stolen but were not reported. Americans for Gun Safety, Stolen Firearms: Arming the Enemy, December 2002, p. 16.

Approximately 500,000 guns are stolen each year from private citizens. Cook, Philip J. and Jens Ludwig. Guns in America: Results of a Comprehensive Survey of Gun Ownership and Use. Washington, D.C.: Police Foundation, 1996.

ATF data reports that 38% of traced crime guns are rifles or shotguns. 49% of traced crime guns were first legally purchased in CT; 34% were purchased in Rhode Island; and 17% were purchased in other states. Dept. of Public Safety, Special Licensing & Firearms Unit, Feb. 2004, from ATF data.

71.4% of CT residents believe that U.S. gun control laws are not tough enough; only 5.5% thought they were too strict. Connecticut Gun Safety Study, The Center for Research & Public Policy, May, 2003.

98% of CT residents surveyed, and 96% of gun owners, supported requiring the reporting of lost or stolen firearms. Connecticut Gun Safety Study, The Center for Research & Public Policy, May, 2003.

States that require mandatory licensing and registration of handguns make it harder for criminals and juveniles to obtain guns from within the state. Webster, Daniel W., Vernick, Jon S., Hepburn, Lisa M, "Relationship Between Licensing, Registration, and Other Gun Sales Laws and the Source State of Crime Guns," Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives has stated that "…addressing stolen firearms is an important part of a firearms trafficking strategy because theft constitutes one means of illegal supply of firearms." Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms, Following the Gun: Enforcing Federal Laws Against Firearms Traffickers, June 2000, p. 3.

According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the absence of documentation regarding private gun sales facilitates the illegal gun trade to criminals and other prohibited purchasers. Department of the Treasury, Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Gun Shows: Brady Checks and Crime Gun Traces (January 1999).

In CT, if this gun is stolen, the theft must be reported to police within 72 hours. Colt AR-15, banned in CT in 1993 but previous owners could still posses. CT General Statutes 53-202/53-202g.	There is no requirement to report the loss/theft of this gun. Colt Match Target Rifle; not banned in CT.

In CT, a person needs a pistol permit to buy this Glock 17, and also needs to pass a background check at the time of purchase. The sale is registered with the Department of Public Safety. CT General Statutes, 29-33.	None of those regulations apply to the private sale of this Grizzly .50-caliber rifle.

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