Abstract
The article contributes to the discussion about gun control by examining whether restrictions on certain types of firearms influence the number of crimes committed with these types of guns. The aim is to determine whether there is any causal nexus between the stringency of gun policy and the number of violent crimes committed with firearms. A comparative analysis is conducted in the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom. Our research shows that the strictness of gun policy and legal availability have a very small influence on crime; hence, further restrictions will not help to reduce the number of violent crimes committed with firearms. More useful approaches seem to deal with the black market, arms trafficking and related societal problems.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.Amnesty International, IANSA and Oxfam International (2006 ) The AK-47: The world’s favourite killing machine . 26 June . Available at: https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/act300112006en.pdf
2.Bartoszewicz MG (2016 ) Fortress Europe: Terrorist threat in the context of ISIS . Studia Polityczne 44 (4 ): 205 –224 .
3.Ask the Police (2021 ) Q509: Are stun guns illegal? 18 July . Available at: https://www.askthe.police.uk/content/Q509.htm
4.
Assinder
N
(2010 ) Shootings reignite gun-control debate in Britain . Time , 3 June . Available at: http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1993727,00.html
5.
Azrael
D
Cook
PJ
Miller
M
(2004 ) State and local prevalence of firearms ownership measurement, structure, and trends . Journal of Quantitative Criminology 20 (1 ): 43 –62 .
6.
Berg-Schlosser
D
De Meur
G
(2009 ) Comparative research design: Case and variable selection . In:
Rihoux
B
Ragin
CC
(eds) Configurational Comparative Methods: Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) and Related Techniques . Thousand Oaks, CA : SAGE , pp. 19 –32 .
7.
Bhattacherjee
A
(2012 ) Social Science Research: Principles, Methods, and Practices . Tampa, FL : University of South Florida .
8.
Bilgel
F
(2020 ) Guns and homicides: A multiscale geographically weighted instrumental variables approach . Geographical Analysis 52 (4 ): 588 –616 .
9.BlackBeltBarrister (2021 ) Self-defence: Common myths and misunderstandings . BlackBeltBarrister , 20 May . Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFz6Rkej6hs&ab_channel=BlackBeltBarrister
10.
Campbell
L
(2010 ) Responding to gun crime in Ireland . The British Journal of Criminology 50 (3 ): 414 –434 .
11.
Card
R
(2010 ) Criminal Law . New York : Oxford University Press .
12.
Chapman
S
(2013 ) Over Our Dead Bodies: Port Arthur and Australia’s Fight for Gun Control . Sydney, NSW, Australia : Sydney University Press .
13.
Collier
D
(2011 ) Understanding process tracing . PS: Political Science and Politics 44 (4 ): 823 –830 .
14.
Cross
R
(2013 ) The air cartridge system – 10 years on . 1 September . Available at: https://www.airgunmagazine.co.uk/features/air-cartridge-system-10-years-later/
15.ČTK (2021 ) Právo bránit sebe i jiné se zbraní bude v Česku ústavně zakotveno [In the Czech Republic people will have the right to defend themselves and others with a weapon granted by the constitution ]. CeskeNoviny , 18 June . Available at: https://www.ceskenoviny.cz/zpravy/pravo-branit-sebe-i-jine-se-zbrani-bude-v-cesku-ustavne-zakotveno/2053037
16.
D’Alession
JS
Stolzenberg
L
(2000 ) Gun availability and violent crime: New evidence from the national incident-based reporting system . Social Forces 78 (4 ): 1461 –1482 .
17.Deník.cz (2015 ) Lékař tvrdí, že zbrojní pas střelce z Brodu byl neplatný, policie nesouhlasí [General practitioner claims that the arms license of the Uherský Brod shooter was invalid at the time of the attack, police disagree ]. 27 February . Available at: https://www.denik.cz/z_domova/lekar-tvrdi-ze-zbrojni-pas-strelce-z-brodu-byl-neplatny-policie-nesouhlasi-20150.html
18.Eurostat (2021 ) GDP per capita, consumption per capita and price level indices . 15 December . Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=GDP_per_capita,_consumption_per_capita_and_price_level_indices
19.
Fleetwood
J
Lea
J
(2020 ) De-funding the police in the UK . British Society of Criminology Newsletter 25 . Available at: https://www.britsoccrim.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/BSCN85-Fleetwood-Lea.pdf
20.
George
AL
Bennett
A
(2005 ) Case Studies and Theory Development in the Social Sciences . Princeton, NJ : Princeton University Press .
21.Government of the UK (n.d.) Selling, buying and carrying knives . Available at: https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knives
22.
Greenwood
C
(1972 ) Firearms Control: A Study of Armed Crime and Firearms Control in England and Wales . London : Routledge and Kegan Paul .
23.
Grierson
J
(2020 ) What are the rules of air guns in England and Wales? The Guardian , 22 July . Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jul/28/what-are-the-rules-governing-the-use-of-air-guns-in-the-uk
24.
Grigoryan
A
(2014 ) Armenia: Joining under the gun . In:
Frederick Starr
S
Cornell
SE
(eds) Putin’s Grand Strategy: The Eurasian Union and Its Discontents . Washington, DC : Central Asia-Caucasus Institute and Silk Road Studies Program , pp. 98 –108 .
25.
Grillot
SR
(2011 ) Global gun control: Examining the consequences of competing international norms . Global Governance 17 : 529 –555 .
26.
Hamill
ME
Hernandez
MC
Bailey
KR
, et al . (2023 ) Legal firearm sales at state level and rates of violent crime, property crime, and homicides . Journal of Surgical Research 281 : 143 –154 .
27.
Harcourt
BE
(2010 ) Language of the Gun: Youth, Crime, and Public Policy . Chicago, IL : University of Chicago Press .
28.Home Office of National Statistics (2017 ) Police workforce, England and Wales, 31 March 2017 . Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/630471/hosb1017-police-workforce.pdf
29.
Joseph-Salisbury
R
Connelly
L
Wangari-Jones
P
(2021 ) ‘The UK is not innocent’: Black Lives Matter, policing and abolition in the UK . Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal 40 : 21 –28 .
30.
Kleck
G
(2004 ) Measures of gun ownership levels for macro-level crime and violence research . Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 41 (1 ): 3 –36 .
31.
Kleck
G
(2015 ) The impact of gun ownership rates on crime rates: A methodological review of the evidence . Journal of Criminal Justice 43 (1 ): 40 –48 .
32.
Knight
B
(2013 ) State gun policy and cross-state externalities: Evidence from crime gun tracing . American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 5 (4 ): 200 –229 .
33.
Kovandzic
TV
Marvell
TB
(2003 ) Right-to-carry concealed handguns and violent crime: Crime control through gun decontrol? Criminology & Public Policy 2 (3 ): 363 –396 .
34.
Landman
T
(2008 ) Issues and Methods in Comparative Politics: An Introduction . London : Routledge .
35.
Laville
S
Burke
J
(2015 ) Why has the AK-47 become the jihadi terrorist weapon of choice? The Guardian , 29 December . Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/29/why-jihadi-terrorists-swapped-suicide-belts-kalashnikov-ak-47s
36.
Lesková
I
(2019 ) Střelec v ostravskénemocnicizabilšestlidí. Policie ho našla, jeposmrti [Shooter killed six people in Ostrava hospital. Police officers found him dead ]. IDnes , 10 December . Available at: https://www.idnes.cz/ostrava/zpravy/strelba-ostrava-nemocnice-policie-zasah.A191210_081440_ostrava-zpravy_klu
37.
Light
M
Slonimerov
E
(2020 ) How gun control policies evolve: Gun culture, ‘gunscapes’ and political contingency in post-Soviet Georgia . Theoretical Criminology 24 (4 ): 590 –611 .
38.
Ludwig
J
(2005 ) Better gun enforcement, less crime . Criminology & Public Policy 4 (4 ): 677 –716 .
39.
Ludwig
J
Cook
PJ
(eds) (2004 ) Evaluating Gun Policy: Effects on Crime and Violence . Washington, DC : Brookings Institution Press .
40.Macrotrends (2022 a) Czech Republic Poverty Rate 1992-2022 . Available at: https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/CZE/czech-republic/poverty-rate
41.Macrotrends (2022 b) U.K. Poverty Rate 1969-2022 . Available at: https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/GBR/united-kingdom/poverty-rate
42.
Malcolm
JL
(2004 ) Gun control in England: The tarnished gold standard . Journal on Firearms & Public Policy 16 : 123 –134 .
43.
Mauser
GA
(2004 ) The failed experiment: Guncontrol and public safety in Canada, Australia, England and Wales . Journal on Firearms & Public Policy 16 : 89 –121 .
44.Military-Today (2022 ) AKS-74U Compact assault rifle . Available at: https://www.military-today.com/firearms/ak_74.htm
45.Ministerstvo vnitra (Ministry of Interior of the Czech Republic) (2017 ) Analýzadopadůrevidovanésměrnice o zbraních [Analysis of the impacts of the amended European gun control directive ]. Available at: http://www.mvcr.cz/soubor/analyza-legislativniho-reseni-dopadu-revidovane-smernice-pdf.aspx
46.
Obama
B
(2016 ) Guns are our shared responsibility . International New York Times , 6 January , Section A, p. 23 (New York edition).
47.
Peters
BG
(1998 ) Comparative Politics: Theory and Methods . New York : NYU Press .
48.Policie ČR (Police Department of the Czech Republic) (2016 ) Statistické přehledy kriminality za rok 2016 – 2016_12_Prosinec_sest_01a [Statistics of criminality in 2016] . Available at: https://www.policie.cz/clanek/statistiky-kriminalita-statisticke-prehledy-kriminality-za-rok-2016.aspx
49.
Popenker
M
(2022 ) Kalashnikov AK-74 AKS-74 AK-74M assault rifle (USSR/Russia) . Available at: https://modernfirearms.net/en/assault-rifles/russia-assault-rifles/ak-74-ak74m-eng/
50.
Przeworski
A
Teune
H
(1982 ) The Logic of Comparative Social Inquiry . New York : Wiley-Interscience .
51.
Rose
R
Mackenzie
WJM
(1991 ) Comparing forms of comparative analysis . Political Studies 39 : 446 –462 .
52.
Šámal
P
(2012 ) Trestní zákoník I: komentář §1-139 [Czech Criminal Law: Comment on Sections 1-139 ]. Praha : C.H. Beck .
53.
Sanjurjo
D
(2020 ) Gun Control Policies in Latin America . New York : Palgrave Macmillan .
54.
Schneider
R
(2020 ) Crime and political effects of a right-to-carry ban in Brazil . In: 72nd Economic Policy Panel Meeting , 22 October 2020 (online).
55.Small Arms Survey (2017 ) Civilian firearms holdings . Available at: http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/Weapons_and_Markets/Tools/Firearms_holdings/SAS-BP-Civilian-held-firearms-annexe.pdf
56.
Sof
E
(2022 ) Why is the AK-74 not as popular as the AK-47? 31 March . Available at: https://special-ops.org/why-is-the-ak-74-not-as-popular-as-the-ak-47/
57.The Crown Prosecution Office (2021 ) Firearms . 29 October . Available at: https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/firearms
58.The Specialist LTD (n.d.) AK-47 folding stock . Available at: https://www.thespecialistsltd.com/ak-47-folding-stock
59.UK Home Office (2016 ) Guide on firearms licensing law . Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/518193/Guidance_on_Firearms_Licensing_Law_April_2016_v20.pdf
60.UK Office for National Statistics (2017 a) Crime in England and Wales: Police force area data tables – Year ending March 2017 . Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/policeforceareadatatables
61.UK Office for National Statistics (2017 c) Offences involving the use of weapons: Data tables – Year ending March 2017 . Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/offencesinvolvingtheuseofweaponsdatatables
62.UK Office for National Statistics (2019 ) Offences involving the use of weapons: Data tables – Year ending March 2019 . Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/offencesinvolvingtheuseofweaponsdatatables
63.UK Office for National Statistics (2021 ) Crime in England and Wales: Year ending December 2020 . Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/crimeinenglandandwales/yearendingdecember2020
64.UK Office for National Statistics (2021 ) Homicide in England and Wales: Year ending March 2021. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/homicideinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2021
65.
Vecino-Ortiz
AI
Guzman-Tordecilla
DN
(2020 ) Gun-carrying restrictions and gun-related mortality, Colombia: A difference-in-difference design with fixed effects . Bulletin of the World Health Organization 98 (3 ): 170 .
66.
Vokuš
J
(2018 a) Statistickéúdaje o zbraních [Firearms statistical data ]. Policie , 19 December . Available at: https://www.policie.cz/clanek/statisticke-udaje-o-zbranich.aspx
67.
Vokuš
J
(2018 b) Trestnéčinyspáchané se střelnouzbraní [Violent crimes committed with firearms ]. Policie , 3 January . Available at: https://www.policie.cz/clanek/trestne-ciny-spachane-se-strelnou-zbrani.aspx
68.
Vokuš
J
(2019 ) Počty příslušníků Policie České republiky [Numbers of police officers in Czech Republic ]. Policie , 3 May . Available at: https://www.policie.cz/clanek/zverejnene-informace-2019-pocty-prislusniku-policie-ceske-republiky.aspx
69.
Zand
B
(2016 ) The people who want the UK’s gun laws relaxed . BBC , 23 February . Available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35588594
70.Constitution of the United States of America . 1787 . Available at: https://constitutioncenter.org/media/files/constitution.pdf
71.Czech Law no.119/2002 Sb. Zákon o střelnýchzbraních a střelivu (Firearms Act) . Available at: https://retromestecko.cz/_files/200014865-0bb700cb25/Z%C3%A1kon-%C4%8D119-2002Sb-st%C5%99el-zbran%C4%9B-st%C5%99elivo.pdf
72.Czech Law no. 40/2009Sb. Trestní zákoník (Criminal Law) . Available at: https://www.zakonyprolidi.cz/cs/2009-40
73.EU Directive 91/477/EHS . Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:31991L0477
74.EU Directive 2017/853 . Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2017/853/oj.UK Firearms Act of 1968. Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1968/27/2015-11-05
75.UK Offensive weapons Act 2019 . Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/17/enacted
76.UK Prevention of Crime Act 1953 . Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Eliz2/1-2/14?view=extent