USA Today: Guns causing all these justifiable homicides
The number of justifiable homicides committed by police and private citizens has been rising in the past two years to their highest levels in more than a decade, reflecting a shoot-first philosophy in dealing with crime, say law enforcement analysts.
Yes. Next they’ll blame castle doctrine. More:
Northeastern University criminal justice professor James Alan Fox describes an emerging “shoot-first” mentality by police and private citizens. For several years, police departments have armed their officers with higher-powered weapons to keep pace with criminal gangs.
More powerful weapons for the police? Perhaps. Quite a few officers are now issues rifles. And some folks don’t like the idea of you defending yourself.
“Clearly there is a message out there that citizens may be able to defend themselves” as well, he says.
And some folks hate that.
Alfred Blumstein, a Carnegie Mellon University criminologist, says the gun “legalization movement” also may have helped create a “greater willingness” among citizens to act in self-defense.
Forty-eight states provide various rights to carry firearms.
Via David who notes the increase also correlates to overall violent crime.
October 15th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
Can someone explain to me why more dead goblins is a BAD thing?
It means the law abiding tax payers aren’t going to have to pay for their room, board, and medical care for a period of months or years (aka, prison).
It also means that said goblins aren’t going to commit any more crimes, which will help lower the crime rate in future years.
Finally, as a side bonus, it should, at least in theory, decrease the number of people who vote Democrat. Although corpses in the urban areas where most homicides occur do have a disturbing tendency to vote anyway.
October 15th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Correction: Quite a few officers are now issued ASSAULT rifles.
Because they’re only good for spray-firing from the hip and killing large numbers of people indiscriminately, right? RIGHT?
October 15th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Eggheads, one and all.
October 15th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Kevin:
You forget. In the hands of the police, they magically morph into highly accurate and safe “Patrol Rifles”.
October 15th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
“…an emerging “shoot-first” mentality by police and private citizens.”
Sure beats the hell out of a “get shot first” mentality. Better to throw hot lead than to catch it, I always say.
October 15th, 2008 at 8:27 pm
Oh, for pete’s sake. Letter sent.
October 15th, 2008 at 8:45 pm
“Clearly there is a message out there that citizens may be able to defend themselves”
And how is this a bad thing? Contrary to what the libsheep believe people have the right to defend themselves anytime, anywhere, from anyone who’s a threat to them. If the libsheep dont want to defend themselves that’s fine by me, the fewer libs the better.
October 15th, 2008 at 9:09 pm
They may not be clear on what the word “justified” means.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:19 pm
Well sure. What would you expect for a reaction? It’s “Dodge City. It’s “Blood In The Streets”. It’s people “Taking The Law Into Their Own Hands”. It’s “Testosterone Poisoning”, etc., etc., etc..
We should convince them use acronyms for brevity, so when they do a report on defensive gun use, they can simply write (or scream) “DC! BITS! TTLITOH! TP!!!”
We’ve all heard it a gizillion times anyway. What’s the point in repackaging it ever few months? They pop up with this crap like whack-a-moles;
“DC! BITS! TTLITOH! TP!!!”
Yeah, yeah, yeah, and freedom sucks, liberty sucks, human rights suck, the concept of property sucks, men suck, pasty fat rich white guys suck (though they apparently have no problem with pasty fat black rich guys. But, oh yeah– Uncle Toms) the Constitution sucks, America sucks, and it’ll all be the end of us unless we become a police state, the sky is falling, the Earth is melting, Bush/Cheney/Halliburton, 9/11 and Katrina were inside jobs, oil buddies, corporations, yadda yadda yadda….
October 16th, 2008 at 12:36 am
“You can”t stop a bad guy with a middle finger and a bag of quarters!” “I got a message for ya but because this is a family TV show…You have to figure it out. Its in there. Its camouflaged, can you see it? Pick one!”
Uncle Ted N. VOTE Ted Nugent for President!!!
October 16th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
The reality seems quite obvious to me. It’s not that people are more willing to use deadly force, it’s that people now have the ability to do so. Obviously, if you look at twenty muggings where the victim is unarmed, and twenty muggings where the victim has a CCW permit, you will probably find that more criminals get shot in the second group. I mean, duh?
October 17th, 2008 at 1:31 am
I might be reading this differently, but I don’t see the article as being that overtly negative.
“Some law enforcement analysts say the numbers represent changing attitudes on the streets… and citizens have taken greater responsibility for their own safety.”
No particular spin on that. And taking responsibility for your own safety is an inherently good thing.
Ho hum. Either way, hopefully there’ll be a nice bell-curve of dead human-impersonating oxygen theives which tapers off as they realise the prey bites back.