New York has some of strictest gun laws in the nation, and the lowest suicide rate

There’s no single answer, but a number of factors probably play a role, according to Carruthers and other experts on suicide.

Low rates of gun ownership are likely key. Guns are used in about half of suicide deaths, and having access to a gun triples the risk that someone will die by suicide, according to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Because guns are so deadly, someone who attempts suicide with a gun will succeed about 85% of the time, compared with a 2% fatality rate if someone opts for pills, according to a study by researchers at the Harvard Injury Control Research Center.

“The scientific evidence is pretty darn good that having easy access to guns makes the difference whether a suicidal crisis ends up being a fatal or a nonfatal event,” said Catherine Barber, who co-authored the study and is a senior researcher at the Harvard center.

New York has some of the strongest gun laws in the country. In 2013 — after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. — the state broadened its ban on assault weapons, required recertification of pistols and assault weapons every five years, closed a private sale loophole on background checks and increased criminal penalties for the use of illegal guns.

This year, the state enacted laws that, among other things, established a 30-day waiting period for gun purchases for people who don’t immediately pass a background check, and prevented people who show signs of being a threat to themselves or others from buying guns, sometimes referred to as a “red flag” or “extreme risk” law.



https://www.oregonlive.com/health/2019/12/new-york-has-some-of-strictest-gun-laws-in-the-nation-and-the-lowest-suicide-rate.html?utm_campaign=oregonian_sf&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

Tens of thousands of people on parole or probation in N.J. could be able to vote

About 80,000 people in New Jersey who are on parole or probation could soon have the right to vote.

A key state Senate committee cleared legislation A5823 Thursday, setting up a final vote in the full Senate is scheduled for Monday.

If it passes, it will then head to the desk of Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat who has said he supports the measure.

“It’s a right, it’s not a privilege,” said state Sen. Ron Rice, D-Essex, one of the bill’s main sponsors, said.

“Some people may think it’s a privilege, but then you tell those women who marched during women’s suffrage that it’s not a right, it’s a privilege,” Rice said. “We won’t accept that.”


https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/12/tens-of-thousands-of-people-on-parole-or-probation-in-nj-could-be-able-to-vote.html

TIFFANY THOMAS FLIPS HOUSTON CITY COUNCIL SEAT FROM RES TO BLUE

LETICIA PLUMMER FLIPS HOUSTON CITY COUNCIL SEAT FROM RED TO BLUE

Trump lost again tonight

SALLIE ALCORN FLIPS HOUSTON CITY COUNCIL SEAT FROM RED TO BLUE

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Houston Mayor Sylvestor Turner re-elected, defeating Trump wannabe

Trump explicitly calls for an end to objective reporting.

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