Report: CDC pressured by gun control zealots to bury stats on guns used in self-defense, downplay firearms as possible crime deterrent
A study commissioned by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that guns were used defensively between 60,000 and 2.5 million times a year.
These statistics weren't just bad news for the countless aggressors who found themselves in the sights of law-abiding Americans but for the gun-control advocates keen to advance their agenda.
While those in the former camp are not liable to make much more trouble, a new report indicates that gun-control advocates successfully pressured the CDC to remove the defensive gun use stats.
What are the details?
A 2013 study commissioned by the CDC and resultant in part by an executive order issued by former President Barack Obama suggested that DGU incidents ranged in frequency from 60,000 to 2.5 million each year.
The report stated, "Estimates of gun use for self-defense vary widely, in part due to definitional differences for self-defensive gun use; different data sources; and questions about accuracy of data, particularly when self-reported. [The National Crime Victimization Survey] has estimated 60,000 to 120,000 defensive uses of guns per year."
The report also noted, "Another body of research estimated annual gun use for self-defense to be much higher, up to 2.5 million incidents, suggesting self-defense can be an important crime deterrent."
This second body of research relies upon the findings of Gary Kleck, professor emeritus at Florida State University’s College of Criminology and Criminal Justice.
Up until this year, this range was reflected on the CDC's gun facts page.
CNN analyst and Reload founder Stephen Gutowski obtained emails between the CDC and anti-gun activists through a Freedom of Information Act request, which revealed a pressure campaign to discount and discard Kleck's findings.
Mark Bryant, executive director of the Gun Violence Archive, wrote to the CDC in one email, "[T]hat 2.5 Million number needs to be killed, buried, dug up, killed again and buried again."
"It is highly misleading, is used out of context and I honestly believe it has zero value — even as an outlier point in honest DGU discussions," added Bryant.
The Reload reported that Bryant appeared convinced Kleck's estimate was detrimental to the anti-gun agenda and to activists' ability to pass new gun restrictions.
"And while that very small study by Gary Kleck has been debunked repeatedly by everyone from all sides of this issue [even Kleck] it still remains canon by gun rights folks and their supporting politicians and is used as a blunt instrument against gun safety regulations every time there is a state or federal level hearing," wrote Bryant.
The gun-control activist added, "Put simply, in the time that study has been published as 'a CDC Study' gun violence prevention policy has ground to a halt, in no small part because of the misinformation that small study provided."
The CDC initially stood by the 2013 DGU range, as reflected in this archived version of its "Firearm Violence Prevention" page.
Earlier this year, the page stated, "Estimates of defensive gun use vary depending on the questions asked, populations studied, timeframe, and other factors related to the design of studies. The report Priorities for Research to Reduce the Threat of Firearm-Related Violence indicates a range of 60,000 to 2.5 million defensive gun uses each year."
In one email, Dr. Debra Houry, acting principal deputy director of the CDC, argued that Bryant's anti-gun group had inspected only "a very small subset of people who have used guns defensively," and that their DGU figure, at odds with Kleck's, "does not include individuals who might have used guns defensively, but not reported this use to law enforcement."
Despite the anti-gun group's dubious claims, the CDC ultimately buckled under the pressure.
Following a virtual meeting with Bryant in September 2021, Beth Reimels, associate director for policy, partnerships, and strategic communication at the CDC’s division of violence prevention, wrote in an email, "We are planning to update the fact sheet in early 2022 after the release of some new data."
Reimels indicated that the corresponding edits would "address the concerns [Bryant] and other partners have raised."
The 60,000 to 2.5 million range was deleted.
Instead, the page now says, "Estimates of defensive gun use vary depending on the questions asked, populations studied, timeframe, and other factors related to study design. Given the wide variability in estimates, additional research is necessary to understand defensive gun use prevalence, frequency, circumstances, and outcomes."
Jennifer Mascia, a reporter with the Trace, pointed out that the CDC had changed its gun violence facts page in early May.
Kleck told the Reload, the "CDC is just aligning itself with the gun-control advocacy groups. ... It’s just saying: 'we are their tool, and we will do their bidding.' And that’s not what a government agency should do."
The Rand Corporation suggested in 2018 that while Kleck's 2.5 million figure may be an overestimate, since his survey presumed more of the population packed heat than would be the case nationally, the "NCVS estimate of 116,000 DGU incidents per year almost certainly underestimates the true number."
That would still put the number of DGUs well over the number comfortably bandied about by Second Amendment critics.
Horowitz: Gun violence, the real red flags that no one talks about
Democrats love guns. They have a policy of leaving no gun felon behind. So long as you actually assault someone with the gun or possess it after having committed a violent crime, you are a protected class in need of “criminal justice reform.” God help you, though, if you are caught carrying a gun to protect yourself from one of those carjackers roaming the streets of cities like Chicago.
Biden is calling on us to do “something” about guns and to pass red flag laws. Well, the biggest red flag is someone who with full due process has already been convicted of multiple violent crimes. That person shouldn’t own a gun, right? Well, what happens when he is caught illegally possessing one? Liberal prosecutors, politicians, and judges don’t want to lock him up because it would add to the prison numbers, which is an anathema to Biden’s de-incarceration goals. If you would only lock up the gun felons in this country – those who do harm to other people with guns or possess guns after having done harm to others – most violent crime would be deterred.
Last Wednesday, a female Chicago cop was seriously injured after a suspect shot her from his car during a traffic stop on a city street. Mayor Lori Lightfoot released a statement saying she will “be praying for the injured officer and the entire department as they grapple with yet another heinous and deliberate assault on our officers’ lives.” But these same leftists always lambast conservatives for offering prayers rather than “doing something” about gun violence. And in this case, as is the case with most city shootings, there was a lot that could have been done.
According to CWBChicago, the suspect in the shooting, a convicted robber, was arrested in October 2020 during a drunk driving incident for possessing a loaded handgun in the car as a convicted violent felon. Court records show the man was released on just $500 bail at the time, and then prosecutors completely dropped the charges just four months later. After all, they believe felony possession is just a technical “nonviolent, low level” offense.
Nearly all the shootings in cities like Chicago are committed by criminals that fit this profile. How about we call Biden’s bluff and have each state create stiff mandatory minimums for felony possession and for committing violent crimes with firearms, while ensuring that prosecutors cannot drop these cases and that judges cannot release them on low bail?
Gun control doesn’t work, but criminal control does.
What is particularly egregious is that Democrats essentially do not believe in prison time for juvenile gun felons, even though an increasingly large share of gun crimes, especially armed carjackings, are being committed by those under 18. The same leftists who demand we raise the age for the legal purchase of firearms to 21 have no problems letting those under 18 off the hook after they assault someone with a firearm and then are caught multiple times while in felony possession of a firearm. Again, most of the murders and carjackings are committed by people who fit this criminal profile. You might call carjacking laws the ultimate red flag laws, except they are never enforced.
Take the case of Isaac Corona who was just charged with the murder of Justin Gamino in Chicago. According to prosecutors, Corona was charged with illegally possessing a firearm as a juvenile but was given probation. Then, in 2016, a grand jury indicted Corona on charges of attempted murder, aggravated discharge of a firearm, and aggravated assault by discharge of a firearm after he went up to a victim and fired three shots. Luck would have it that he missed and then the gun jammed, but that was as close to attempted murder as it gets. However, thanks to a plea deal he reached with the prosecutor, Corona was sentenced to only three years, much of which was served while on home electronic monitoring, and the sentence was also cut in half for “good behavior.”
Seven months after his parole ended in January 2021, Corona ran from cops during a traffic stop, and you can guess what police allegedly found in his jacket pockets. Yup, a loaded handgun in one pocket and a magazine in the other. I doubt he had much regard for the capacity of the magazine either. By this point, any sane person would say he should be held without bail and be sentenced to mandatory 25 years. Instead, he was given low bail, and later in October, officers found Corona at the scene of a shooting unlawfully possessing ammunition and resisting police.
Three days later, Corona succeeded in striking a plea deal and was sentenced to just two years in prison. Of course, the sentence was reduced by 50%, and he received credit for time served mainly on home electronic monitoring. Consequently, he was out less than two months later in early January 2022, and that is how he was on the street to allegedly kill Justin Gamino, a father of a 2-year-old girl who was about to complete his high school degree.
Now, guess who was Corona’s alleged accomplice in the car that day? According to court records, Antonio Gonzalez was one of four people in the car with Corona but got away from police and later allegedly ran over a Chicago cop with a stolen car. What was his history? According to CWBChicago, about a year ago, Gonzalez was arrested during a traffic stop for illegally possessing a handgun. According to court records, he posted a $500 bond deposit then failed to show up in court twice. Despite his failures to appear, the judge never issued a warrant for his arrest. Then several months later, he was arrested again for involvement in a carjacking, but despite the pending gun charges and failure to show, he was released on a $1,000 deposit. Not surprisingly, he is now accused of being involved in, you guessed it, another carjacking and murder case involving a gun.
How about the recent case of Darrell Frazier in Chicago? After having shot a handgun into an occupied car, he pleaded down to just a three-year sentence, which of course was truncated due to state law. Then in November 2020, he was charged with shooting his own son in the leg. The judge did the right thing and held him on $1 million bail, but three months later, he slashed his bail to just $50,000, and Frazier went home on electronic monitoring and GPS by posting a $5,000 deposit. Despite violating the terms of his release, he was actually absolved of electronic monitoring after paying an additional $2,000 deposit. Talk about a red flag! Fast-forward to May 27, and police arrested him for tossing a loaded handgun wrapped in a hoodie on the ground in a residential neighborhood.
These are essentially the stories of every major American city thanks to the “criminal justice reform” agenda, which mollycoddles gun felons so long as they are violent, have a criminal record, and have a proclivity to harm people with guns. You might even call them red flags.
Every GOP governor would be wise to immediately call for mandatory 25-year sentencing with no good time credits or parole for anyone caught to be in felony possession after having been convicted as a violent felon or someone illegally possessing a gun in furtherance of a crime. Most cities are plagued by juvenile carjackers who assault people with guns multiple times in the same year and don’t go to prison. Biden and his ilk believe the age for carrying a gun should be 12 so long as that individual is assaulting people with it rather than defending themself from the assaulters.
If Democrats want gun control, it’s time to give it to them in spades.
Joe Rogan rejects clamor for new gun control and sparks liberal outrage online
Joe Rogan rejected the clamor for new gun control regulations and outraged many liberals who lashed out online against the podcast superstar.
Rogan rejected calls for greater gun restrictions while speaking to scientist Lex Fridman on the Thursday edition of his popular podcast.
“It’s like, how do you stop that? No one knows how to stop that,” Rogan said.
“What is the answer? Is the answer to take everyone’s guns?" added Rogan. "Well, they’re not gonna give their guns up. Only criminals are gonna have guns. It’s not gonna be a good situation.”
He went on to make the conservative argument that an armed populace is a necessary precaution against the possibility of a totalitarian government.
“We see how they are, even with an armed populace, they still have a tendency towards totalitarianism," Rogan continued.
“And the more increased power and control you have over people, the easier it is for them to do what they do. And it’s a natural inclination, when you’re a person in power, to try to hold more power and acquire more power. And it's never, there's never an inclination to give more power back to the people. to give more freedoms back to the people," he added.
"Freedoms lost are rarely regained," Rogan concluded.
Many on the left went on the attack against Rogan on social media.
"I am shocked, SHOCKED I tell you, that Joe Rogan is saying stupid s*** that is not based on reality," read one popular tweet.
"Joe Rogan admits he’s a moron, so why does anybody listen to him?" tweeted a left-wing activist band.
"Shocked, shocked, that once again Joe Rogan has weighed in with Archie Bunker wisdom from 50 years ago," said another user.
"Joe Rogan doesn't oppose gun control because of some deep logistical thought process he spent years cultivating. He opposes it because he knows he's built a predominantly large right wing fan base and doesn't wish to upset them," tweeted another critic.
Rogan hosts the most popular podcast in the world.
Here's more about the gun control debate:
Uvalde, Texas Tragedy: Recognizing the ROT in America’s Soul | @Glenn Beckwww.youtube.com
www.theblaze.com
freebeacon.com