The spike in gun violence continues, with 2021 set to be the worst year in decades

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According to Gun Violence Records, from January 1 to September 15, a total of 14,516 people died from gun violence in the United States. This is 1,300 more than during the same period in 2020, an increase of 9%. Mass shootings are also on the rise. Until September 15, there were 498 mass shootings in the United States, an average of around 1.92 per day. This is 15% more than last year, when there was a total of 611, a rate of 1.67 per day, according to GVA data.

CNN and GVA define a mass shooting as an incident in which four or more people are killed or wounded by gunshot wounds, excluding the shooter.

However, the rapid rise in gun violence could slow down. Richard Rosenfeld, professor of criminology at the University of Missouri – St. Louis and his colleagues found that in the first quarter of 2021, the number of homicides was 23% higher than in 2020. In the second quarter, that number fell to 10%.

Rosenfeld told CNN that many factors could play a role in the increase in gun violence, including the pandemic as well as the racial conflict sparked by the murder of George Floyd last year, and the effect that the two have had on the police in the United States.

“(I) immediately after George Floyd was assassinated and widespread protests broke out across the country,” Rosenfeld said, “this is what we saw in a number of cities – a very, very strong increase “in homicides.

Rosenfeld said the pattern is similar to what happened following the 2014 shooting of Michael Brown by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.

“What we are seeing now is exactly what we have seen (seven years) after the Ferguson incident and the protests that broke out across the country,” Rosenfeld said. “We’ve seen a huge increase in homicides in the big cities, and that increase has persisted – depending on the city – for a year, sometimes just over a year.”

As gun violence continues to increase, sales of firearms and ammunition shortages are also increasing. Meanwhile, Biden’s executive orders focused on expanding regulation of certain types of firearms continue to follow the rule-making process.

Sale of arms and ammunition

Americans bought a record 23 million guns last year, up 65% from 2019, according to Small Arms Analytics (SAAF), a consulting firm based in Greenville, Carolina. South. The National Shooting Sports Foundation estimates that of those who purchased guns in 2020, 8.4 million were new gun owners.
In early 2021, gun sales continued to climb, with 2.2 million guns sold in January, according to the SAAF. While arms purchases have started to decline in most of the previous months from 2020 levels, the number of purchases remains higher than in previous years.
Year-over-year firearms sales were down 25% from the previous year in August. However, the number of sales still far exceeds that of “any year except 2020,” according to SAAF chief economist Jurgen Brauer.
Whether it’s manufacturing disruptions due to Covid-19, the influx of new gun owners, panic buying, increasing hunters, or a myriad of other factors, ammunition has been scarce since 2020. Even police departments have issued warnings for ammunition to be reserved.

Biden’s gun control efforts

While congressional gun control legislation is nowhere in sight and the issue of gun violence has largely left the political air, the actions of Biden’s executive continue to follow. the federal rule making process.

Two major proposals from the Biden administration’s Office of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives focus on regulating certain types of pistol suspenders as well as so-called phantom weapons.

The period for public comment on the ATF’s proposed rule, amending the definition of a “firearm” to include unfinished firearms – phantom weapons – ended on August 19.

The ATF also proposed a rule in June that would significantly regulate pistols using certain stabilization devices. The comment period for the proposed rule ended on September 8. The agency is currently reviewing comments for the two proposed rules before drafting the final version of the rule.

While these proposals are sure to meet significant challenges in court, Biden faces other speed bumps on the way to realizing his gun control aspirations.

On September 9, the administration withdrew its choice of ATF leader David Chipman after the candidate faced extremely precarious Senate confirmation prospects among GOP members, some moderate Democrats and the Independent Senator from the Senate. Maine Angus King.
ATF candidate did not disclose discussions and events to Senate committee, including speaking on agent policy



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