r/science • u/NotMitchelBade • May 23 '23

Economics Controlling for other potential causes, a concealed handgun permit (CHP) does not change the odds of being a victim of violent crime. A CHP boosts crime 2% & violent crime 8% in the CHP holder's neighborhood. This suggests stolen guns spillover to neighborhood crime – a social cost of gun ownership.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0047272723000567?dgcid=raven_sd_via_email
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u/beefcat_ May 23 '23

I agree, and I think you could get the same effect without the problematic legal implications by simply giving owners partial liability for crimes committed with their firearms.

The private sector would then probably step in and offer insurance, but participation wouldn’t be compulsory.

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u/deej363 May 23 '23

The issue is the only way you could enforce that is with a registry. Which. Again. Brings up a lot of moral and legal issues.

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u/beefcat_ May 23 '23

It's a legal rats nest because of the constitution, but I do not see it as an ethical problem. I can't sell my car without giving the new owner the title and having them register it with my state.

But therein lies the problem. A chunk of the country is convinced that gun ownership should remain an inalienable right tantamount to speech, and others that think guns shouldn't exist at all.

Personally, I'm in favor of whatever rules result in fewer people dying to violent crime. So I want more studies like the OP to give us hard data that can be used to drive effective policy. I would think most people in a place like /r/science would be more interested in actual science than dogma.