Constitutional Law

Brady releases its annual report card

One story here:

"The Brady Campaign's report uses five categories to score states: how well they curb firearm trafficking, whether they perform background checks, how effectively they keep guns from children, whether they ban military-style weapons and how they regulate guns in public places.

Massachusetts scored 54 out of 100 points. No. 1-ranked California scored 79. Utah scored zero."

And their 2008 [lastest available] homicide rates, per 100,000 population:

California 5.8 Massachusetts 2.5 Utah 1.5

A good correlation: the worse your Brady grade, the lower your homicide rate. Here's another story:

"Gun control laws in northern New England are being given low marks in the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence's annual survey of state gun laws. The survey gave Maine a score of 11 out of 100 for its laws, while New Hampshire was given a 9 and Vermont was given an 8. The Brady Campaign says laws in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont allow the sale of guns without background checks, put children at risk and help feed the illegal gun market."

Homicide rates: Maine 2.35 New Hampshire 0.9 Vermont 2.74

NH is the second-lowest in the entire country. All the other States Brady complains of are in a quick count of the 15 States with the lowest homicide rates. If we look just at firearm homicides, you'd think Brady would have a chance, but it does lousy there, too. In California, it's #1 pick, firearm homicides are 69% of the total. In New Hampshire, they're 16%, Maine 35%, Vermont 47%, Utah 46%.

Oh, as Don Surber points out, the only State with a lower homicide rate than New Hampshire is North Dakota, whose three murders gave it a rate of 0.47 and a firearm homcide rate of zero -- and Brady Campaign gave it an F and 4 points out of 100,

Full post as published by Of Arms and the Law on February 19, 2010 (boomark / email).