Heller, McDonald and Murder: Testing the More Guns, More Murder Thesis

Abstract

We examine several aspects of the more guns, more murder hypothesis. We find that ordinary people typically do not kill in a moment of rage, so that preventing them from owning guns will not save lives. Societies without guns are not typically peaceful and safe. Historically, more guns are associated with less murder. Modern Europe nations with very high gun ownership rates have much lower murder rates than low gun ownership nations. In the United States: the colonial period of universal gun ownership saw few murders and few of those were gun murders. More guns do not mean more murder.

Keywords: Firearms, Murder, Homicide, Crime

JEL Classification: K14, K42