If one were to count these as killed by gun, then gun deaths clearly outnumber drunk driving deaths. The rate of gun deaths in the us increased yet again in 2017, driven mostly by a rise in the number of suicides with a firearm. See updated drinking and driving statistics for 2020. More than 3,000 died in 2017 in accidents that involved distracted driver. The information can help local public health decisionmakers and community partners see. In our most recent poll, nearly 75 percent of participants voted that they think the number of deaths caused by drug overdoses in 2017 outnumbered those caused by guns or car crashes. And some states with a high gun ownership rate have some of the lowest gun death rates. South africa is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for road accidents with 25. Ap file photomatt saylesinvisionabortion advocates cannot help making the most outrageous analogies, even when it devastates their own arguments. Textbook example of a case where a concerted effort by the government and public activists to crack down on an undesirable behavior produced tangible positive.
This fact sheet provides a snapshot of alcoholinvolved deaths and drunk driving and an overview of proven strategies to reduce or prevent drunk driving. If you added in gun suicides on one side and those people whose alcohol consumption killed themselves on the other, the deaths would tilt much more on the side of alcohol use, but i. And for 2008 i could not find any solid numbers for california, but i did find some national compairisons for 2008, 37,261 drunk driving related deaths occured and 30,295 gun related deaths. There were roughly 14,000 gunrelated homicides in the united states in 2016. But c omparing gun deaths to auto deaths misses the mark because impaired drivers, speeders and road ragers are only part of what. In fact, more people are killed each year by drunk drivers than people murdered by people using a gun. That amounted to one person dead every 50 minutes in 2016.
While the exact figures have not yet been confirmed, it appears our readers will be proven right. So whether or not the analogy is good depends on how closely the parts match. According the nonprofit project the gun violence archive, there were 12,562 gun deaths in 2014 and 9,959 in 2015 thus far. Gun deaths in the united states eclipse deaths during alcohol. From anything, including car accidents, poisonings, injuries, disease, infections and guns. As you can see, total firearmrelated deaths are more on par with total autorelated deaths, with these. According to the most recent data from the national highway traffic safety administration, there were a total of 10,874 fatalities in motor vehicles involving drivers with blood alcohol concentrations bacs of. By comparison, the number of people who died in car crashes was 37,757, an increase of 12 percent. Law government gun crime prevention research center. Guns are now killing as many people as cars in the u. In 20, almost 120,000 emergency rooms treated young people with injuries related to alcohol and driving. Compared to national gun deaths for the same time period, there were 38,600 deaths, 22,938 by suicide and 14,415 homicides. National health interview survey, 2014, table p5 pdf iconpdf 102 kb. Accurate statistics of gun ownership is not available, but most estimates are around 200250 million legally owned firearms in the u.
On a per capita basis, there were 12 gun deaths per 100,000 people in 2017 the highest rate in more than two decades, but still well below the 16. Thats a grand total of 301,797 firearmrelated deaths in the past. Tens of thousands of car deaths are unfortunate, but less disturbing because theres no deadly intent behind them. In the us, twice as many people commit suicide by gun than are murdered by one. When it comes to fatalities from drunk driving, one country stands out from the rest. Hypocrisy, drunk driving, and gun control david kessner. In the wake of the horrible shooting in oregon, many abortion advocates have decided it somehow helps their cause to compare gun deaths to. Canadas drunkdriving death rate worst among wealthy countries, u. Likewise with alcohol, if a drunk driver kills himself and three passengers, it should be counted as 4 alcoholrelated deaths. The report contains the striking finding that gun deaths exceeded motor vehicle deaths in 14 states and the district of columbia in 2011, the latest year for which the relevant data are available from the centers for disease control and prevention. Abortion advocates think comparing abortion to gun deaths. Nationally, close to twothirds of gun deaths are suicides, and the split is much higher in states such as alaska, which reported more than twice as many gun suicides as traffic deaths in 2010. Drunk driving, which was involved in 28 percent of 2016 traffic fatalities, remains a critical issue.
Information about firearm and motorvehiclerelated injury deaths was obtained from mortality data files maintained by cdcs national center for health statistics. Still, alcoholrelated crashes account for onethird of the states total traffic deaths annually. Pot, opioids now rival alcohol as risk factor in driver deaths. Politifact factchecking a comparison of gun deaths and. Guns far less dangerous than alcohol washington times. A report out on tuesday from the violence policy center confirms yet again the lunacy of americas loose gun policies. The 5 worst states for drunk driving deaths according to. In 2015, there were 364 deaths as a result of drunk driving. Alcohol kills nearly 3x time more american each year than guns. The gun lobby argues that in many instances the gun violence in homes is caused by an outsider bringing a gun into the home, not the home owner. The data also excludes most suicides, which account for the majority of annual gun deaths and which are rising.
Deaths resulting from firearm and motorvehiclerelated. Every year, approximately 100,000 americans are involved in a gunrelated accident. Drunk ad campaign in 1983, and since then, nearly 70 percent of americans have attempted to stop a peers from driving drunk. Guns remain the only consumer products not regulated for health and safety in the united states. While alcoholimpaired crash deaths have fallen during the last decade by roughly 20 percent, according to the nhtsa, gunrelated deaths have. So enough with the false caring for the abused women and children or drunk driving victimes because we could save a lot of them but dont in order to protect our buzz. The most recent statistics from 2010 state that the deaths and damages from.
Gun deaths vs alcohol crash deaths trap shooters forum. Gunrelated deaths have surpassed motor vehicle deaths. But despite increasingly stringent safety regulations on drivers, cars and roads, accidental motor vehicle deaths have fallen more slowly than. In addition to the shocking number of deaths linked to alcohol, there are a. Four years later, in 2017, 16 to 24 year olds comprised 42% of the drivers killed in alcoholrelated crashes. Guns killed more people than car crashes in 2017 vox. I know something about the reasons motor vehicle deaths have declined, and why gun deaths are increasing. She searched for an organization similar to mothers against drunk driving, but focused on gun violence prevention. Some people say that making this comparison is like comparing apples to oranges. Overall, overdose deaths rose 11 percent last year, to 52,404. A popular claim about gunrelated fatalities revitalized after the 2017 las vegas mass shooting is. The drunk driving is a persistent problem with 24862 dwi arrests in 2017. Gunbanners ignore the fact that booze is more deadly than bullets. But comparing gun deaths to auto deaths misses the mark because impaired drivers, speeders and road ragers are only part of what causes.
The most recent analysis shows that in 2014, gun deaths outpaced motor vehicle deaths in 21 states and the district of columbia. Why do gun advocates compare gun deaths to car deaths. May as well ban the cars, cuz they caused way more fuckin deaths than guns did. More deaths involve a firearm in some way than drunk driving, by about double. Gun deaths compared to motor vehicle deaths violence. Drunk drivers cause more deaths than firearms letters to. Gun deaths since 1968 outnumber deaths in all american wars.
As it stands, the biggest mismatch is the sober on the right side, which has no natural counterpart on the left. For all the ruckus now about new gun laws, when will the lawmakers do something about drunk driving. If you live in a safe area youre much more likely to be killed by a drunk driver then by a lunatic with a gun. Now, i am not saying that that there arent gun safety laws. And because of the amount of time we spend in cars, and because we continually strive to make cars safer and driving safer, its easier to accept those accidental deaths. Even when comparing overall alcoholrelated crash deaths to just gun homicides, the gun deaths exceed dui crashes. Canadas drunkdriving death rate worst among wealthy. Last month, the cdc reported that 39,773 people in the united states died from gunshot wounds in 2017, the most singleyear gun deaths in half a. In 2006 there were 22,073 alcohol related deaths i assume this includes deaths from dui.
Now read this slowly the argument doesnt negate the fact that much gun violence happens in american homes, it. Gun deaths compared to motor vehicle deaths violence policy. When a shooter fires his or her weapon at another person, whether it be in selfdefense or not, the intent is. Such comparisons tend to get made when other abused and inaccurate statements are flying about, usually regarding that far more ink is spilled talking about gun deaths when there are just as many car deaths. But they arent consistent across states in montana, for example, you dont need a license or any safety training to buy a gun and they arent anywhere near as comprehensive as our car safety laws. In 2005, gun deaths outnumbered vehicle deaths in just two states, alaska and maryland, plus the district of columbia. Now, i manage grassroots engagement for everytown for gun safety. In 2017, overdose deaths intentional and accidental went up by 7 percent, to a record of 70,000a number higher than deaths from hiv, car crashes, or gun violence at their peaks, as the new. Even when intoxicated, the driver s intent is not to harm another person.
But lawmakers responses to gun deaths pale in comparison. Suicide is behind americas record gun deaths the atlantic. The 5 worst states for drunk driving deaths according to the nhtsa you might just want to stay in for new years eve if youre in wyoming or south carolina. Gun control is to reducing deaths from gun violence as making it harder for sober people to own cars is to reducing deaths from drunk driving. Drunk driving deaths, despite all of the precautions that law enforcement bodies continue to take, continues to be on the rise. Data shows gun casualties outpace terrorism and drunken driving deaths. In 20, 42% of drivers in drunk driving deaths were aged 16 to 24. According to madd, there are 29 duirelated fatalities every day in the us statistics madd.
747 1532 1244 909 1232 524 999 453 32 109 90 1448 1594 1261 1276 431 565 1278 154 1499 1002 617 641 1018 1337 721 221 67 450 902 1457 267 673 410 447 348 740 738 691 716 505