[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 120 (Friday, September 20, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Page S8971]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     MORE GUNS EQUALS MORE SUICIDES

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, a study by the Harvard School of Public 
Health brings to light disturbing information about the presence of 
firearms in a home. The study conducted by Drs. Matthew Miller, Deborah 
Azrael, and David Hemenway entitled ``Household Firearm Ownership and 
Suicide Rates in the United States'' concluded that in states where gun 
ownership levels are higher, a disproportionately large number of 
people commit suicide.
  According to the study, of the more than 30,000 suicides in 1998, 57 
percent involved the use of a firearm. In states with more guns, people 
were more likely to commit suicide. The study found that in States with 
a higher incidence of gun ownership people were 1.6 times more likely 
to commit suicide than people in states with a lower incidence of gun 
ownership. Further, the Harvard study shows that people 15-24 years old 
from states with a high incidence of gun ownership are more than four 
times more likely to commit suicide than people the same age in states 
with a low incidence of gun ownership. According to statistics cited by 
the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, in 1998, more than 1200 
children aged 10-19 committed suicide with firearms. Nearly two-thirds 
of all completed teenage suicides involve a firearm.
  One step that can be taken to reduce suicides among children is to 
prevent easy access to guns for children. I cosponsored Senator 
Durbin's Child Access Prevention Act because it would do just that. 
Under this bill, adults who fail to lock up loaded firearms or an 
unloaded firearm with ammunition could be held liable if a weapon is 
taken by a child and used to kill or injure him or herself or another 
person. The bill would also increase the penalties for selling a gun to 
a juvenile and create a gun safety education program that includes 
parent-teacher organizations, local law enforcement and community 
organizations. This bill is similar to legislation President Bush 
signed into law as Governor of Texas. I support this bill and I believe 
it is a meaningful step in the right direction. It's clear that 
reducing child access to guns can save lives.

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