Research shows gun laws can save lives

In a column earlier this month, Michael Raymond made a passionate plea against further gun laws. But as the saying goes, while he's entitled to his own opinion, he's not entitled to his own facts. Unfortunately, he got the facts wrong.

First, he incorrectly states that "Eliminating guns will not likely reduce suicides to any measurable extent," citing no research at all. Rather, let's look at what the leading researchers at Harvard have to say.

According to a Harvard study, about 85 percent of suicide attempts with a firearm result in death. Drug overdose - the most widely-used method - is successful only 3 percent of the time, so guns are a far more lethal weapon. And among those who survive a suicide attempt, only 10 percent go on to commit suicide thereafter. Access to guns is clearly a vital factor in whether someone with suicidal thoughts will survive the ordeal.

Second, Raymond somehow whittles down the 32,000 gun deaths a year to 2,000, claiming shootings that kill young men of color between 18 and 24 don't matter. His logic is that these shootings - "attributed to gangbangers," according to Raymond - would not be stopped with more gun laws.

Once again, he is wrong on the facts. Johns Hopkins research has shown that when Missouri repealed its background check law in 2007, it resulted in 25 percent more gun murders. This is just one of many studies that prove strong laws keep guns away from criminals and save lives.

There's no one thing that can stop every shooting, but there are sensible measures that we know will save lives. Ignoring the facts and downplaying the murders of innocent young men of color is both offensive and counterproductive.

Bluffton