Can we reduce mass public shootings?

Columbine High School, Columbine Colorado:13 murdered.

Lewiston, Maine: 18 murdered.

Robb Elementary School, Uvalde,Texas: 21 murdered.

Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, Connecticut: 26 murdered.

These are some of the grim statistics of innocents slaughtered by a crazed person (or persons) using a firearm to commit his evil. Each of these acts of butchery meets the FBI’s definition of a “mass public shooting,” which is a shooting that occurs in public, does not involve another crime such as robbery, and results in the shooting deaths of four or more persons.

What do we know about the shooters, the victims, the place of the crime and the firearms used in these horrors? Can our knowledge of these things stop or reduce the likelihood of such horrors repeating in the future?

The Crime Prevention Research Center has just published its annual update on the characteristics of “mass” public shooters from 1998 through 2023. Here are some of the key findings:

• Biological sex matters: 96% of mass shooters are male.

• 84% of mass murder shooters are between the ages of 16 and 45.

• Military veterans are overrepresented as shooters: In 2022, about 6% of the U.S. population were veterans, while around “20% of mass public shooters were veterans.”

• The mental health profession is failing: “From January 1st, 1998, to October 25th, 2023, 51% of mass murderers have seen mental health care professionals before their attacks.” (A 50/50 “success” rate is a failure.)

• Gun-free zones kill: Since 1998, 82% of the attacks have occurred in “gun-free zones.” Going further back to 1950, that number jumps to 94%.

• Political philosophies matter: “California’s per capita rate of Mass Public Shootings is much higher than the rate for the rest of the country.”

• The majority of mass shootings are committed by handgun.

• Around 55% of both mass shooters and victims of mass shootings are non-Hispanic whites. This is an underrepresentation, as current census data asserts around 75% of the U.S. population is “white alone.”

• Blacks are overrepresented as shooters, but underrepresented as victims: Census data reveals the black population in the U.S. is 13.6%; the report finds blacks commit 16.7% of shootings, and are victims 9.9% of the time.

What are the implications of this research?

1. Legislative bans on “assault rifles” are asinine; the data show that a shooter is most likely to use a handgun. Additionally, legislative bans on magazine capacity in guns and rifles are also likely to be unsuccessful as the shooter can simply bring several firearms to the crime scene.

2. A disproportionate number of veterans are mass public shooters; it is clear that post-discharge mental health services for our service members must be greatly improved.

3. The mental health profession is failing, and with the overwhelming acceptance of leftist “care,” it’s not hard to see why.

Jumping off the page is the fact that the overwhelming majority of these mass shootings have taken place at soft target sites where firearms are prohibited. It’s common sense to invest public money into protecting public institutions—especially where the population is the most vulnerable, like a school. This also, once again makes the case that “gun-free zones” only disarm peaceable citizens, not criminals.

Image: Free image, Pixabay license, no attribution required.