What you can do - survey and study on gun control issues

Shooting Industry, March, 1998 by Jim Schneider

In November we talked about the importance of encouraging your customers in law enforcement to join pro-gun police groups and be as vocal as they dare on the gun issue.

The wisdom of that advice was underlined that same month as the voters in Washington State went to the polls and defeated anti-gun Initiative 676 by a landslide 71 percent to 29 percent margin. The initiative had trailed in the polls 60 percent to 37 percent only six weeks earlier.

The active opposition of police groups, representing some 85 percent of law enforcement in the state, played a key role in defeating the initiative that Sarah Brady had hoped would lead to national gun registration.

Indeed, surveys in the state found that more than 80 percent of voters were more likely to vote for or against a measure if police spokesmen favored or opposed it. Interestingly, these same voters were more likely to oppose a measure if their local newspaper supported it - which may say something for the public's perception of the general media.

Now there's an in-depth survey of law enforcement officers in Lehigh and Northampton counties in Pennsylvania that merits as much publicity as we- including your shop - can give it. It shows that the police are largely pro-gun and have little faith in gun control as crime prevention.

The author of the study was Stephen Christopoulos, a research analyst at Easton Hospital, who had the cooperation of 43 of 44 local police departments. Of the officers responding, 7 percent were command, 21 percent supervisory and 72 percent patrol. Some 84.8 percent were full-time and 15.2 percent part-time. They averaged about 37 years old with 12 years as a police officer. As you might expect, 93.8 percent keep firearms in their home.

Among the many questions asked, here are some of the most significant:

* Gun laws reduce crime: strongly agree: 6.1 percent; somewhat agree: 31.3 percent; somewhat disagree: 21.8 percent; strongly disagree: 40.8 percent.

* More gun laws will reduce crime: strongly agree: 6.4 percent; somewhat agree: 19.9 percent; somewhat disagree: 24.7 percent; strongly disagree: 49.1 percent.

* Outlawing civilian gun ownership will result in less crime: strongly agree: 3.2 percent; somewhat agree: 8.2 percent; somewhat disagree: 22.1 percent; strongly disagree: 66.5 percent.

* Outlawing civilian gun ownership will result in a more civilized society: strongly agree: 2.9 percent: somewhat agree: 10.4 percent; somewhat disagree: 29.5 percent; strongly disagree: 57.2 percent.

* The federal five-day waiting period (Brady Law) is effective in preventing criminals from obtaining firearms: strongly agree: 5.9 percent; somewhat agree: 28.5 percent; somewhat disagree: 19.2 percent; strongly disagree: 46.4 percent.

* Laws limiting gun ownership to law-abiding citizens do not keep guns out of the hands of criminals: strongly agree: 73.9 percent; somewhat agree: 17.3 percent; somewhat disagree: 3.7 percent; strongly disagree: 5.1 percent.

* Laws governing the possession and carrying (keeping and bearing) of firearms are effective at preventing criminal acts: strongly agree: 4.0 percent; somewhat agree: 24.8 percent; somewhat disagree: 21.6 percent; strongly disagree: 49.6 percent.

* Gun safety is the responsibility of the gun owner, not the government: strongly agree: 73.0 percent; somewhat agree: 16.7 percent; somewhat disagree: 8.1 percent; strongly disagree: 2.2 percent.

* The root cause of criminal violence is the availability of guns: strongly agree: 10.3 percent; somewhat agree: 17.9 percent; somewhat disagree: 26.3 percent; strongly disagree: 45.5 percent.

* If all guns were to magically disappear tomorrow, there would be no more criminal violence: strongly agree: .4 percent; somewhat agree: 4.3 percent: somewhat disagree: 10.4 percent; strongly disagree: 85.0 percent.

* Instead of offering protection, a gun in the home puts families at even greater risk: strongly agree: 4.9 percent; somewhat agree: 18.7 percent; somewhat disagree: 32.5 percent; strongly disagree: 43.9 percent.

Interestingly, nearly half these officers - 47 percent - said they would refuse to obey a superior's order to conduct house-to-house searches to enforce a general gun ban.