America has become haunted by the specter of deadly school shootings. As we all work to prevent further tragedy, some are advocating allowing students to carry concealed firearms as a means of defense. But would such measures really make college campuses safer?
In addition to the risk factors above, allowing more guns on college campuses and into schools is likely to increase the risk of students being shot accidentally. Guns in the home are four times as likely to be used in unintentional shootings than in self-defense. Plus, a 1991 report by the General Accounting Office that surveyed unintentional firearm fatalities found that 23% of those deaths occurred because the person firing the gun was unaware whether the gun was loaded. The report explains several ways in which this happens. “For example, one might empty a firearm but not notice that a round remains in the chamber, one might typically leave a weapon unloaded and so assume that it is always unloaded, or one might pull the trigger several times without discharge (dry-firing) and so assume the chamber is empty even though it is not.” These mistakes are not limited to children. Even trained gun users have made them.
If there are no guns on campus, these types of accidents cannot occur.
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