Kids, guns, and killing fields

A plague of youth violence seems to be sweeping the nation. The number of juveniles, eighteen and under, who are arrested annually for murder increased bt bearly a quarter between 1983 and 1988 and then increased again by nearly half between 1988 and 1990. Indeed, homicide is now the leading cause of death for black males aged 14-44 and the reduction of violence among youth has become an important public health goal. Incidents that would have seemed shocking and inexplicable just a few years ago--gang warfare, drive-by slayings, wanton brutality, in-school shootings--have somehow become commonplaces of urban existance. Among the many questions that might be asked about violence committed by and against youths is where and how do these youths obtain firearms? U.S. federal law prohibits direct sale of handguns to persons under the age of 21 and sale of shoulder weapons to those under the age of 18. These provisions have evidently not prevented large numbers of youths from obtaining sophisticated, high-quality guns. HOw prevalent has gun-carrying become among youths in the central cities? What are the methods and sources by which guns are obtained? Is there anything to be learned about the details of youthful gun acquisition hat would be useful in getting them to stop it? VioLit summary: OBJECTIVE: This study by Wright et al. provided a description of the gun obtainment methods and the gun use of primarily inner-city youth. METHODOLOGY: This study is based on the preliminary results of two extensive surveys concerning firearms and youth violence. The first surveys were given to 835 criminally active youth currently in maximum-security correction facilities. The second surveys were given to 1653 male and female students at ten inner-city public high schools in five large cities in California, Louisiana, Illinois and New Jersey. The subjects were predominantly non-white, poorly educated inner-city teenagers. The results of these surveys were divided into the categories of gun possession, quality of weapons, availability of guns, street prices, the debate on status or survival, and juvenile crime. Percentages were used to analyze the data. FINDINGS/DISCUSSION: When measuring gun possession of the youth in the first sample, it was found that 86% of the incarcerated juveniles owned at least one firearm in their lives; and 65% reported owning at least three firearms. Seventy-two percent of the incarcerated juveniles owned revolvers; 66% owned semi-automatic weapons; 51% owned a sawed-off shot gun. Fifty-five percent of the incarcerated youth reported carrying a gun all or most of the time before being arrested; 84% carried a gun sometimes. Seventy- nine percent of the incarcerated youth had male family members who owned guns; 62% reported having relatives who carried guns with them much of the time. Ninety percent of the incarcerated youth had friends who carried firearms. When measuring gun possession of the youth in the inner-city high school, it was found that about 30% of the male students owned at least one gun in their lifetimes; 15% reported owning at least three firearms. Fifteen percent of the male students owned a revolver and 18% owned a semi-automatic weapon. Twelve percent of the male students who currently owned a gun reported carrying it most of the time; 23% reported carrying a gun sometimes. Seventy percent of male students had male family members who owned guns. Fifty-seven percent of the students reported having friends who owned guns; 42% reported having friends who carried guns. The quality of the firearms owned by subjects in both samples were of very high caliber (majority were at least .38 caliber). The three gun qualities rated the highest by the incarcerated youth were firepower, quality of construction and traceability; by the male students, they were quality of construction, ease of shooting, and accuracy. When asked about the availability of guns, 70% of the incarcerated youth and 41% of the male students reported that it would be no trouble to get a gun. The main sources for both samples to obtain firearms were family, friends, street contacts, drug dealers and junkies. Many of these guns would be stolen by the youth or their contacts. Many of those in the samples had asked someone to purchase a gun for them in a pawn shop or gun store (32% of the inmates; 18% of the male students). These sources and methods of obtaining weapons were very similar to those used by adult felons. Most of those in the sample purchased guns at very inexpensive prices ($300 and less). The theory that juveniles obtain guns to maintain or gain status with their peers and to prove their masculinity was not supported by these surveys. Eighty-six percent of the inmates and 90% of the male students rejected the statement that their peers would not respect them if they did not carry a gun. Similar statements received similar responses. The main reasons for purchasing guns were reported to be self-protection and self-preservation. The most frequent times the subjects carried their guns were in a strange area, when they were out at night, and when they needed to protect themselves. Large numbers in both samples had been shot, stabbed or wounded during their lives. Seventy-five percent of the inmates had fired a gun at a person before at least once; 69% had fired in what they reported as self-defense. AUTHORS' RECOMMENDATIONS: The authors suggested that the mass media has ignored the questions of where, how and why juveniles acquire firearms. They suggested that there needs to be more emphasis on reducing the motivations for juveniles to carry guns rather than more severe punishments for carrying them. They concluded that joblessness, lack of opportunities, and fear for personal safety were the primary causes of inner-city violence and gun obtainment by teenagers. (CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado) KW - California KW - Louisiana KW - Illinois KW - New Jersey KW - Juvenile Firearms Carrying KW - Juvenile Firearms Ownership KW - Juvenile Firearms Use KW - Juvenile Offender KW - Juvenile Violence KW - Urban Crime KW - Urban Violence KW - Urban Youth KW - Firearms Ownership KW - Firearms Accessability KW - Firearms Violence KW - Firearms Carrying Causes KW - Firearms Carrying Incidence and Prevalence KW - Firearms Use Causes Language: en