Those with access to firearms rarely use their weapon to defend themselves and instead are far more likely to be exposed to gun violence in other ways, according to a Rutgers Health study.
An overwhelming majority of firearm users, or about 92%, indicated they never have used their weapons to defend themselves, with less than 1% say they did in the previous year, a new study by the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center found.
“Adults with firearm access are far more likely to be exposed to gun violence than they are to defend themselves with their firearms,” said Michael Anestis, executive director of the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center at Rutgers and lead author of the study. “It’s not that defensive gun use never happens, but the notion that firearm owners are routinely saving their own lives or those of their loved ones by using a firearm in self-defense simply is not backed up by the data. When we consider policies, we need to more heavily weigh the harms that frequently occur, not the instances of defense that rarely happen.” To read the full story.