What the running tally of shooting deaths in Cuyahoga County can tell us

[SecularMotion]

The editorial board's look at firearm-related deaths in Cuyahoga County this year is intended to provide an informed picture of lives lost and communities affected; to highlight some of the public policy issues involved; and to examine whether gun violence is a growing public health crisis in the county.

Among the policy issues that hinder efforts to halt illegal firearm sales is the difficulty in tracing crime guns -- in part because of federal legislative impediments.

Also of concern is Ohio's failure to enact a safe-storage law to encourage gun owners to secure their firearms properly, to keep them out of the hands of minors.

The latest Cuyahoga County figures are for April. During the month, county Medical Examiner Tom Gilson ruled that gunshots had claimed the lives of 12 residents. Seven were murdered; five took their own lives.

http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/05/the_smoking_gun_a_running_tall.html

[blueridge3210]

1. What the data can actually tell us:

Federal legislative impediments - meaning no federal gun registry. As one of the homicides cited was a murder and the alleged shooter is a prohibited person the registry would not prevent this crime.

Also of concern is Ohio's failure to enact a safe-storage law to encourage gun owners to secure their firearms properly, to keep them out of the hands of minors.
None of the deaths cited in the article were minors that got ahold of unsecured firearms. As far as suicides go, it does not appear a safe storage law would affect the decision to take one's own life with a firearm.

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