Most guns seized in 8 U.S. cities are pistols, not assault rifles

[SecularMotion]

(Reuters) - Most of the guns seized from gang members, felons and drug traffickers in eight U.S. cities over a decade were handguns, not the automatic assault rifles often depicted in Hollywood crime stories, according to a study published on Monday.

In the sample of 10,435 weapons seized by police in cities that included Los Angeles and Washington, 77 percent were handguns, and seven out of 10 of those were semi-automatic, according to the Geneva-based research project Small Arms Survey. The guns were seized from 2002 to 2012.

Less than 12 percent of the confiscated weapons were rifles, and the number of machine guns, submachine guns and machine pistols recovered by police were negligible, said the study "Small Arms Survey 2014: Women and Guns."

The findings contrasted with how criminal firearm use is often depicted in popular culture, with TV shows, movies and songs depicting scenes of gang members and drug dealers spraying automatic assault rifles, leading to a warped public perception of gun violence, program director Keith Krause said.

http://kelo.com/news/articles/2014/jun/16/most-guns-seized-in-8-us-cities-are-pistols-not-assault-rifles-study/

[blueridge3210]

1. So, why all the energy expended

trying to "ban" certain long guns and so called "high capacity" magazines? Why not focus attention on the more likely threat. What are your thoughts on this issue?

[Duckhunter935]

2. What we have been saying for years

and all the effort for a new AWB and magazine capacity limits.

So what would your comments on the story be? Let me guess, you agree with it, forget about rifles and we should put our efforts at ensuring the current system is enforced and crack down on gang members, felons and drug traffickers?

[safeinOhio]

3. Looks like registration of all handguns is the way to go.

"the number of machine guns, submachine guns and machine pistols recovered by police were negligible," those weapons must be registered making them hard to obtain.

[gejohnston]

4. why are machine guns more commonly used

in UK and Europe, and Australia than the US? Why aren't sawed off bolt actions more common crime guns in Canada and New Zealand instead of pistols? They don't have to be registered. Even before NFA, outside of the mob and the few Thompsons stolen from police armories, they really weren't used in crimes then either. Outside of a single shot zip gun, an open bolt sub-machine gun is the simplest basement gun to make,
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2014/04/04/australian-motorcycle-gang-diy-firearms-surface/
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/22/1090464799535.html
then there is this guy
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/jeweller-angelos-koots-admits-to-making-submachine-guns-at-his-seven-hills-home-and-supplying-them-to-bikie-groups/story-fni0cx12-1226760983916

Has nothing to do with registration.

[safeinOhio]

6. Why aren't hand guns more commonly used

in crime in countries that require them to be registered?

[gejohnston]

7. they are,

In the UK's case, machine guns have been prohibited since 1937. Since you can buy a SMG for the same price of a pistol on the street, and you will get the same time if caught, why not go for the better deal? The same is probably true in the rest of Europe. That is why they use machine guns.
Also, most of the private handguns in these countries are not registered. For example, the German government estimates only one in five private handguns are registered.

There are a number of cultural reasons as well. For example, guns were rarely used in England even before any gun control existed there. Many in the criminal element viewed guns, and perhaps still do, as "unmanly".

There is no evidence to support the registration will do anything theory, Handguns were used as often in Canada before 1934, when they started licencing and registration of handguns. Did Canadian criminals switch to machine guns, which didn't require registration until 1952, or hacksawed long guns? No.

[Eleanors38]

5. you don't say. We've said this for years.nt

[jimmy the one]

8. physics lesson

blue ridge: ... why all the energy expended trying to "ban" certain long guns and so called "high capacity" magazines? Why not focus attention on the more likely threat.

Those 'certain long guns' have several times more kinetic energy per bullet than most handguns, were designed for military battles, & superclips increase firing capacity a lot. Duh.
.. and are popular with crazed gunnuts wanting to hurt schools.

link: 77% were handguns, and seven out of 10 of those were semi-automatic, according to the Geneva-based research project Small Arms Survey. The guns were seized from 2002 to 2012. Less than 12% of the confiscated weapons were rifles

Which is close to the national gunstock proportion of ~66% handguns & 33% long guns, where rifles & shotguns are split somehow, so the 12% rifles is not that far off total percentage of gunstock. Duh.
A bit inordinately high for handguns true, but a lot of cheaper handguns become unwanted sooner.

[blueridge3210]

9. And yet the chief threat is from handguns

not from long guns; magazine capacity has little, if any impact on crime rate. Physics has little to do with the criminal misuse of firearms which is the pervue of government action.

[NYC_SKP]

10. Funny how they never address the perpetrators, their criminal history or demographics.

Yet many blame white male christian conservatives as the primary culprits.

IMHO, that's way of and some of the common traits relate to poverty, criminal history, and patterns or history of violent behavior.

That's the whole problem with their strategy and the truth of the matter. Guns don't kill people, crazy and desperate people kill people.