Fact or Fiction? Concealed Carry Permit Holders Will Commit Crimes

Originally published by the USCCA and reposted here with permission. See original article here.

"Fact or Fiction? "Concealed carry permit holders will commit crimes"

Fiction

The minimum age to obtain a concealed handgun license (CHL) in Texas is 21. A study found the following data regarding Texas men and women over the age of 21.

By The Numbers

• The average male is 18 times more likely to be arrested for committing a non-violent crime than the average male CHL holder.
• The average male is 7.7 times more likely to be arrested for committing a violent crime than the average male CHL holder.
• The average female is 13 times more likely to be arrested for committing a non-violent crime than the average female CHL holder.
• The average female is 7.5 times more likely to be arrested for committing a violent crime than the average female CHL holder.

“An Analysis of the Arrest Rate of Texas Concealed Carry Handgun License Holders as Compared to the Arrest Rate of the Entire Texas Population 1996 – 1998, Revised to Include 1999 and 2000 Data” — William E. Sturdevant, 2000

John Lott, president of the Crime Prevention Research Center, compared the behavior of CCW holders to police. He concluded that, “concealed handgun permit holders are extremely law-abiding.” And added, “In Florida and Texas, permit holders are convicted of misdemeanors and felonies at 1/6 of the rate at which police officers are convicted.” Among police, firearms violations occur at a rate of 16.5 per 100,000 officers. Among permit holders in Florida and Texas, the rate [of firearms violations] is only 2.4 per 100,000. That is just 1/7 of the rate for police officers. In addition, misdemeanors which cost permit holders their licenses might have been speeding violations or other simple violations having nothing to do with violence or concealed carry. So CCW holders are likely even more law-abiding than these numbers suggest.

Although too small of a small sample size to provide much statistical significance, the FBI analyzed 50 active-shooter incidents from 2016 and 2017. In 10 incidents, citizens confronted the shooter. In eight of those incidents, one or more citizens safely and successfully acted to end the shooting.

• In four incidents, unarmed citizens confronted or persuaded the shooter to end the shooting. Twice, school staff confronted and restrained the shooter. In one incident, a citizen used his car to thwart the shooter. Another citizen persuaded a shooter to surrender during a police chase; she ran up to the shooter’s car as he came to a stop and pulled him out of his seat, bringing the chase to an end.
• In four incidents, citizens possessing valid firearms permits successfully stopped the shooter. Twice, citizens exchanged gunfire with the shooter. In the other two incidents, the citizens held the shooter at gunpoint until law enforcement arrived.
• In one incident, a citizen possessing a valid firearms permit exchanged gunfire with the shooter, causing the shooter to flee to another scene and continue shooting.
• In one incident, a citizen possessing a valid firearms permit was wounded before he could fire at the shooter.

“More Guns, Less Crime: Concealed-Carry Permit Holders More Law-abiding Than Police”, The New American, Bob Adelmann, February 14, 2019"