Australia’s Hailed Gun Control Efforts Wouldn’t Address Cause Of Most Firearm-Related Deaths In U.S., Study Finds
Many gun control advocates point to Australia's laws that were enacted after a mass shooting in the 1990s as a model for America to follow. But mass shootings account for only a small fraction of firearm-related deaths in the U.S., with most coming from suicide or simple homicide. Neither of those kinds of deaths fell in Australia. News on gun safety comes out of California, also.
Los Angeles Times:
Why Australia's Famed Gun Control Laws Probably Wouldn't Reduce Shooting Deaths In America
On a spring day in the Tasmanian town of Port Arthur, a lone gunman shot an elderly couple at the inn they owned, 22 diners lunching at a nearby tourist spot, two tour bus drivers and several of their passengers, four occupants of a BMW, and two customers at a gas station. By the time the bullets stopped flying on April 28, 1996, 35 people were dead and another 23 were wounded. It was the worst mass shooting Australia had ever seen. In a matter of months, Australia rolled out the National Firearms Agreement, which banned the possession of automatic and semiautomatic firearms in all but “exceptional circumstances.” (Kaplan, 9/26)
The Associated Press:
California Tightens Rules For Concealed Weapons, Bump Stocks
Californians will have to undergo at least eight hours of training, including live-fire exercises, before carrying a concealed weapon, under one of several firearms bills acted on by Gov. Jerry Brown. The bill helps standardize the state's current patchwork requirements for obtaining concealed weapons permits. It was among dozens of bills that the Democratic governor announced signing or vetoing Wednesday. (9/26)
