Do stricter gun laws work? Here are global examples of legislation that reduced deaths
As of Thursday, there have been 214 mass shootings in the United States this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, an independent online archive of gun violence incidents. For their data, Gun Violence Archive defines a mass shooting as having a minimum of four victims shot who were injured or killed in an incident.
This year there have been 27 school shootings involving injury or death, according to Education Week, an education news publication that has tracked school shooting data since 2018.
In the aftermath of the shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas on Tuesday, politicians have spoken both for and against stricter gun laws.
On Wednesday, gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke spoke in favor of stricter gun laws during a press conference given by Gov. Greg Abbott.
More: O’Rourke confronts Abbott in Uvalde: ‘It’s on you until you choose to do something’
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz spoke in favor of having one door in and out of school buildings with armed law enforcement outside.
During a Fox News program, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick did not speak in favor of stricter gun reform, instead citing video games, the internet and multiple entrances into schools as the main issues.
In a poll conducted in February, an average of 43 percent of Texans said they favored stricter gun laws with the second highest percentage, 34, that said the laws should be left as they are now.
More: Should the U.S. have stricter gun laws? Polls show where Texans stand on reform
Do stricter gun laws work? Here are some examples of legislation around the globe that reduced the number of firearm-related deaths.
United Kingdom
After the 1988 Hungerford Massacre ended with 17 people, including the shooter, dead, Britain put into place the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988, which banned the ownership of semi-automatic rifles and restricted the use of shotguns with a magazine capacity of more than two rounds.
When 16 children ages 5 and 6 along with their teacher were shot and killed in Scotland at Dunblane Primary School in 1996, more restrictions in the United Kingdom were put in place.
According to a report by the New York Times, mass shootings did not completely disappear, with 12 killed in 2010 and another five killed in 2021 — however, gun-related violence has dropped significantly with the restrictions.
Australia
In 1996, 35 people died and 23 were wounded in the Port Arthur Massacre in Australia. Following the incident, reforms included a “National Firearms Buyback Program,” and a permanent amnesty program in Tasmania, where the shooting happened, was put in place.
A nationwide amnesty program started in July 2021, requiring the surrender of unregistered firearms throughout Australia.
According to the National Library of Public Medicine, there were 13 mass shootings in Australia 18 years prior to the 1996 shooting and none reported in the next 10 years after.
New Zealand
After the Christchurch mosque shooting in March 2019 killed 50 people, New Zealand banned the sale of assault weapons and barred the circulation of high-capacity magazines, similar to what the attacker had used.
Before the 2019 shooting, the highest number of firearm-related murders recorded between 2005 and 2018 was in 2007 with 20 incidents.
The year after the shooting, in 2020, the country had 16 firearm-related murders and 11 in 2021. This year, New Zealand police have recorded four firearm-related murders.
This story was originally published May 26, 2022 at 5:38 PM.
