Writer’s gun column full of distortions

Hannah Miller’s column [Gun violence can be prevented; so why aren’t we doing it, Nov. 9 Forefront] distorted many facts on gun violence in this country and was just flat wrong on how gun background checks work.

For instance, Ms. Miller stated that 89 gun deaths occur daily in the U.S. However, when you exclude suicides and legal gun interventions, the real number of gun deaths is 35 per day! (Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009).

Also, Ms. Miller conveniently forgot to mention—more likely didn’t bother to research—that guns are used 2.5 million times a year in self-defense, or about 6,800 times per day! (Source: “Armed Resistance to Crime,” The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, Northwestern University School of Law, 1995).

I’d like to know where Ms. Miller gets her information on our background check system in this country, because she obviously doesn’t know what she’s talking about.

For example, contrary to her assertions, there is no background check exemption for online gun sales or sales at gun shows. I know this from personal experience and really don’t like it when people either distort facts (or don’t bother to get the facts) or just outright lie in order to advance their political agenda.

While Second Amendment rights are certainly an emotional issue to many citizens, I hope in the future the IBJ is a little more discerning when it comes to picking their guest columnists on this subject.

__________

Jack Moran
Zionsville