GUN CRIME AND GUN COMMENT
The tragic death of
14-year-old Danielle Beccan, shot dead whilst walking home from
Nottingham’s Goose Fair in early October, propelled gun crime back into
the national news. Her murder, coupled with the publication of gun crime
figures by the Home Office, resulted in headlines about gun crime
"spiralling out of control". Many of the reactions fitted into a
familiar pattern of comment about gun crime in this country, one that
focuses on certain aspects of the problem, but fails to consider the
overall situation. It would be good to have a more balanced reaction.
For some politicians, gun
lobby spokesmen and media commentators a rise in gun crime means that
measures taken by the government, and in particular the ban on handguns,
is not working. Rather than suggest additional measures that might help,
they undertake a selective reading of the statistics to further an
agenda which condemns some (black inner city youths, in particular) for
being attracted to guns whilst maintaining that other sections of
society (always referred to in terms such as "criminalised legal
owners") should be allowed wider gun ownership. Crimes committed with
legally obtained guns tend to be dismissed as aberrations, yet a
significant proportion of gun crime does involve guns such as
imitations, some converted to fire live ammunition, and airguns that
have been obtained legally.
Gun Control Network has
always believed it is not possible to pigeonhole the issues in this
simplistic way. Guns are potentially dangerous in any hands, and easy
access to whatever group always makes it possible for gun crime to be
committed. That is why we campaign for tight controls over access to
all guns.
When the gun crime
figures are examined carefully they reveal a mixed picture. In Britain
gun crime remains low, but as Paul Evans, who heads the Home Office's
police standards unit, told the Commons home affairs committee it needs
to be "nipped in the bud before it snowballs out of control". So
it is important to focus in particular on those areas of gun crime that
are increasing.
The latest figures for
England and Wales were provisional statistics for recorded crimes
(excluding any with airguns) for the year to June 2004. These showed an
increase of 310 offences (3%) compared to the year ending June 2003.
There was a 15% drop in gun deaths, and offences with handguns fell by
10%. There were big increases in two categories, the use of
Replica/imitation guns (660 more offences) and the use of a category
named Other firearms, which the Home Office indicates are mainly
paintball guns (280 more offences). If the contribution made by
Replica/imitation guns is deducted, the level of gun crime fell by over
4%. Offences committed with imitation handguns that have been converted
to fire live ammunition are currently included as handguns: so the
handgun figure would be even lower were converted weapons to be
included elsewhere. Imitation guns are still legally available and not all
convertible guns have been banned (some were prohibited
earlier this year).
GCN’s conclusion is that
the continuing availability of imitation guns makes a
significant contribution to the increase in gun crime. The ease with
which these guns can be obtained and the lack of willingness on the part
of Government to deal with this undermines the progress made on handgun
crime since the latter were banned. We would like to see the critics put
their weight behind GCN’s campaign to have the sale of all imitation guns
banned.
Gun crime figures for
Scotland receive little attention in the UK national press. These have
shown a steady drop over the years since the handgun ban was introduced,
a trend continued with the latest set for 2003. If the effects of
changes in gun legislation on gun crime are to be viewed in their
totality, then the more optimistic picture from north of the border
cannot be excluded from discussions.
Danielle Beccan’s death
prompted a number of articles which looked at inner city gun crime,
particularly in black communities like St Ann’s in Nottingham. There is
no denying that a major problem exists in such areas, but the impression
left by some of the articles is that gun crime rarely extends beyond
them, and if so is an export from the inner cities. Even the quickest of
scans through our monthly incidents lists (click
here) shows that this is misleading,
the result of underreporting the level of crime committed with imitation
guns, BB guns and other air weapons. Gun crime has to be tackled
wherever it occurs. Its roots are often the same, a belief that a gun
provides its owner with respect and power, which can then be used to
threaten, injure or kill, something that has no geographical boundaries.
We are all horrified by what happened in Nottingham, but it should not
stop us from looking at what happens everywhere else.
Gun lobby spokesmen like
to make comparisons between the rights of gun owners on either side of
the Atlantic but rarely dare to make comparisons between the gun crime
figures. One comparison worth noting is that the total number of
firearms offences in England and Wales (10,590 in 2003/4), a figure
which includes fatal injuries, serious injuries, slight injuries,
threats and no injury, is of the same order as the level of just one
category of gun crime in the USA, homicides. More than anything else we
believe that British gun crime has been kept in check by our tough gun
control laws. But more can be done.
Every gun death is a
tragedy, there were 70 in 2003-4, and the shooting of Danielle Beccan
has reminded us all of the horror of violent death. Whilst some continue
to promote shooting, GCN is working hard to ensure that public safety is
put first, that gun crime is prevented by limiting access to guns. Tough
sentencing and good policing will always play a part, but too often at a
stage when it is too late for the victim. If we can reduce the ease with
which guns are obtained we can reduce the number of victims too.
> See also
GCN's Press Release (3
February 2005)
