The Federal Bureau of Investigation released its Uniform Crime Report for 2018 on Monday, and the numbers indicate that more people were killed by knives than rifles.
The annual report touts an overall drop in violent crime for the second consecutive year, according to the Bureau’s news release on the numbers. However, the numbers specifically on homicides in the United States offer some insight into America’s ongoing gun control debate.
Due to multiple shooting massacres that took place in August, gun control proponents have once again turned their animus toward semi-automatic rifles such as the AR-15. Perhaps the most salient example of this is 2020 Democratic candidate Beto O’Rourke’s pledge, “Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47.”
Media Pushes New Pandemic – CBS News Rolls Out Fear Campaign Over Ebola Outbreak with ‘No Vaccine, No Treatment’
Jeanine Pirro Threatens Parents After Wild Teens Create Disturbing Scene in D.C. Restaurant
Civil liberty advocates sue blue state over ‘show your papers’ gun law
Retired Austin cop tears into leftist city council for stripping police of key tools before shooting rampage
Trump Says He Canceled 11th-Hour Iran Bombing at Request of Saudi Leaders Amid New Peace Talks
Supreme Court Bluntly Swats Down Virginia Dems’ Power Grab
DHS, War Dept join probe into Singham network allegedly sowing discord in US
New York’s ‘wrong-headed’ defendant-friendly laws helped toss Mangione evidence: retired cop
‘Unelected mayor of DC’: Trump continues Washington makeover despite backlash
Los Angeles School District Pivots Away from Denying Equal Treatment to Student Bible Club
Blue-state tax burden fuels Americans fleeing to Republican-led southern states
Poland seeks answers after Pentagon scraps planned US armored brigade rotation
An unburdened Bill Cassidy doesn’t regret Trump impeachment vote after primary loss
Former Virginia assistant principal on trial after allegedly ignoring warnings before 6-year-old shot teacher
What the Data Actually Says About Abortion and Women’s Health
However, as has been the case in previous years, the numbers show that rifles in general — including semi-automatics as well as others — only account for a fraction of a percent of the total homicide rate in the United States.
Here’s what the FBI’s 2018 homicide numbers show us:
- Overall, the number of homicides dropped from 15,195 in 2017 to 14,123 in 2018. The overall number of people murdered with guns dropped as well.
- 10,265 were committed with firearms, out of which handguns accounted for 6,603.
- Rifles were used in 297 homicides, shotguns in 235, and “other guns” in 167.
- 2,963 homicides were listed as “firearms, type not stated.”
What does this show us? According to the available information, rifles accounted for just 2.1 percent of total homicides last year — and 2.9 percent of gun homicides.
Media Pushes New Pandemic – CBS News Rolls Out Fear Campaign Over Ebola Outbreak with ‘No Vaccine, No Treatment’
Jeanine Pirro Threatens Parents After Wild Teens Create Disturbing Scene in D.C. Restaurant
Civil liberty advocates sue blue state over ‘show your papers’ gun law
Retired Austin cop tears into leftist city council for stripping police of key tools before shooting rampage
Trump Says He Canceled 11th-Hour Iran Bombing at Request of Saudi Leaders Amid New Peace Talks
Supreme Court Bluntly Swats Down Virginia Dems’ Power Grab
DHS, War Dept join probe into Singham network allegedly sowing discord in US
New York’s ‘wrong-headed’ defendant-friendly laws helped toss Mangione evidence: retired cop
‘Unelected mayor of DC’: Trump continues Washington makeover despite backlash
Los Angeles School District Pivots Away from Denying Equal Treatment to Student Bible Club
Blue-state tax burden fuels Americans fleeing to Republican-led southern states
Poland seeks answers after Pentagon scraps planned US armored brigade rotation
An unburdened Bill Cassidy doesn’t regret Trump impeachment vote after primary loss
Former Virginia assistant principal on trial after allegedly ignoring warnings before 6-year-old shot teacher
What the Data Actually Says About Abortion and Women’s Health
Once again, deaths from knives and “personal weapons” like hands, fists, and feet were higher than the number of homicides committed with rifles. More than five times as many murders were committed with knives (1,515) as with rifles, and more than twice as many people were killed with “personal weapons” (672). Other years included in the FBI report’s table — which spans 2014-2018 — show similar disparities between the same weapon types.
Again, these numbers are just for rifles as a whole. There’s no further breakdown for what kind of action or cosmetic features the rifles had.
But despite the facts, the question of what to do about the AR-15 and other widely used semi-automatic rifles — sometimes referred to as “assault weapons” — will likely remain as one of the main focus points in America’s ongoing debate about guns and the Second Amendment.
Story cited here.
