Harrisburg Brethren in Christ, Pastor “Woody” Dalton, Sept 19
Harrisburg has the highest per capita murder rate in PA
Akron Mennonite, Sept 15
Gun Murders per capita in 2009
Per 100,000 population
(UN Office on Crime & Drugs)
3.5
3
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0.5
0.1
0.2
0.2
Spain
Germany
0
Australia
Canada
USA
Change in murder rate 2000 - 2010
360
348
350
340
330
320
314
310
305
-3%
300
+17%
297
290
280
270
2000/2001 av
2009/2010 av
Philadelphia
2000/2001 av
2009/2010 av
Rest of Pennsylvania
31,593 people died from gun
violence in the U.S. in 2008
0.69% of 2008 gun deaths were
“self protection”
Sept 14 at Eastern U: Cheryl & Joe Seay share about
their 18 year old son Jarell, shot on their porch
In 2011
Philadelphia police
confiscated over
4,600 illegal guns
Legal gun buyers (in PA) must
be at least 21 years old, and have:
- No criminal record
- No restraining orders
- No history of mental illness
How do criminals & kids get guns?
One way is through
STRAW PURCHASERS
A criminal gun
trafficker gives
money to a straw
purchaser who can
legally buy a gun.
STRAW PURCHASING
He/she
buys
multiple
guns for
the
trafficker
Legal gun shop
STRAW PURCHASING
The trafficker
sells guns to
anyone who
has the money
and can
not buy a
gun legally.
STRAW PURCHASING
If police trace a
crime gun back to
the straw
purchaser,
he/she says it was
“lost or stolen.”
???
?
?
Gun traffickers and straw
purchasers are at times
arrested.
BUT
Gun shops are
rarely held
accountable for
selling to straw
purchasers.
Gun Shop
“Lost or stolen reporting” law
If a person’s handgun is lost or
stolen, they must report this to
the police within three days.
If they fail to report and the gun
is used in a crime, they can face
liability.
Nov 2007 Survey in PA
Law requiring handgun owners to report
lost or stolen firearms to police
PA House of Representatives
April 1, 2008 vote on
“Lost or Stolen Reporting”
Public support for
“Lost or Stolen Reporting”
96%
63%
140
120
100
37%
80
128
60
40
3%
75
20
0
Support
Oppose
Yeas
Nays
Oct 1st at EMU Conflict & Peace class: Prof Durham and
students analyze the illegal gun trafficking problem.
“Market economics drives it.”
Market economics, a local example
Harrisonburg, VA, Sept 28 -29;
A traveling gun and accessories promotion
“You would get a far
better understanding of
the NRA if you were
approaching us as one of
the great religions of the
world.”
- Warren Cassidy, a former executive of the
National Rifle Association (NRA)
The law of the Spirit
of life in Christ Jesus
… can it set us free
from the law of sin
and death?
mcc.org/fearnot/communities
© 2012 MCC East Coast