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.”
Blanche’s Attorney General Confirmation Hanging in the Balance After 2nd Republican Announces Opposition
Mother of Slain Citadel Cadet Speaks Out After Repeat Criminal Is Arrested for His Murder
Resurfaced Mamdani interview ignites internet frenzy over alleged ‘fake’ Ugandan accent
Anti-abortion groups applaud Blanche review of Biden DOJ policy on mailing abortion drugs
GOP senator deals crushing blow to Trump’s AG nominee after Alaska lobbying blitz
What Do Jesus and the Bible Have to Say About Socialism?
Trump-backed incumbent ousted in House primary as GOP redistricting push set to reshape Tennessee
Trump’s Smithsonian clash exposes striking pattern among museum curators
Trump-backed incumbent loses primary after super PAC bankrolled by Dems meddled in race
Mamdani repeatedly sidesteps questions on reported plan to revive tax hikes on wealthy New Yorkers
Retired police chief helps subdue passenger after alleged midair outburst over alcohol cutoff
Squad-backed ‘Tennessee Three’ lawmaker wins House primary in newly redrawn district
Conservative firebrand who went viral with anti-CCP ad survives key primary
NYC church arson suspect allegedly plotted more attacks, had violent notes like ‘murder them’ and ‘rape him’
Old Trails Fire suspect allegedly confessed to setting 25 fires; judge doubles bail to $2M
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.
Blanche’s Attorney General Confirmation Hanging in the Balance After 2nd Republican Announces Opposition
Mother of Slain Citadel Cadet Speaks Out After Repeat Criminal Is Arrested for His Murder
Resurfaced Mamdani interview ignites internet frenzy over alleged ‘fake’ Ugandan accent
Anti-abortion groups applaud Blanche review of Biden DOJ policy on mailing abortion drugs
GOP senator deals crushing blow to Trump’s AG nominee after Alaska lobbying blitz
What Do Jesus and the Bible Have to Say About Socialism?
Trump-backed incumbent ousted in House primary as GOP redistricting push set to reshape Tennessee
Trump’s Smithsonian clash exposes striking pattern among museum curators
Trump-backed incumbent loses primary after super PAC bankrolled by Dems meddled in race
Mamdani repeatedly sidesteps questions on reported plan to revive tax hikes on wealthy New Yorkers
Retired police chief helps subdue passenger after alleged midair outburst over alcohol cutoff
Squad-backed ‘Tennessee Three’ lawmaker wins House primary in newly redrawn district
Conservative firebrand who went viral with anti-CCP ad survives key primary
NYC church arson suspect allegedly plotted more attacks, had violent notes like ‘murder them’ and ‘rape him’
Old Trails Fire suspect allegedly confessed to setting 25 fires; judge doubles bail to $2M
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.
