In 1993, Lester and Leenars reported on a study of suicide in Canada before and after passage of Bill C-51 in 1977. They used data from yearly Canadian health surveys. The data showed that before passage of the law, the total suicide rate, the firearm suicide rate, and the rate of suicides using other methods had all been increasing. In the eight years after passage of the law, both the firearm suicide rate and the percentages of suicides using a firearm showed a statistically significant decrease. There was no evidence of any increase in suicides using other methods. There was a (not statistically significant) decrease in the total suicide rate after passage of the law. The authors conclude that stricter firearm controls are associated with declines in suicides rates.
(Source: Lester D, Leenaars A. Psychological Reports 1993; 72:787-790)
The same research team published a follow-on study in 1997 stratifying the suicide data by age groups. This revised analysis showed that the firearm suicide rate decreased after implementation of Bill C-17 for adults aged 35-64. For the age groups 15-34 and 64+, the firearm suicide rate continued the increases seen before the bill became law.
(Source: Leenaars, A., & Lester, D. Can J Behav Sci, 29, 176; 1997)
FS Bridges used data from Statistics Canada to examine suicide and homicide in the seven years prior to and after passage of Bill C-17 in 1991. In the 7 years prior to the passage of Bill C-17, the mean total suicide rate was 13.11 (per 100,000 population), the mean firearm suicide rate was 4.09, the mean non-firearm suicide rate was 9.02, and the percentage of suicides using a firearm was 31.2%. In the 7 years after passage of the bill, the mean total suicide rate was 12.95, the mean firearm suicide rate was 3.17, the mean non-firearm suicide rate was 9.76, and the percentage of suicides using a firearm was 24.5%. So passage of Bill C-17 was associated with a decline in the firearm suicide rate and the percentage of suicides using a firearm, and with an increase in the non-firearm suicide rate. There was no real change in the overall suicide rate.
In the 7 years prior to the passage of C-17, the mean total homicide rate was 2.04 (per 100,000 population), the mean firearm homicide rate was 0.69, the mean non-firearm homicide rate was 1.35, and the mean percentage of homicides using a firearm was 33.7%. In the 7 years after passage of C-17, the mean total homicide rate was 1.71, the mean firearm homicide rate was 0.57, the mean non-firearm homicide rate was 1.15, and the percentage of homicides using a firearm was 32.99%. Passage of Bill C-17 was associated with decreases in the overall rate of homicides, the firearm homicide rate, and the non-firearm homicide rate. There was no significant change in the percent of homicides using a firearm.
Using linear regression, the research team demonstrated that rates for firearm suicide and homicide were essentially unchanged in the seven years prior to passage of Bill C-17. In the seven years after passage of Bill C-17, the rate of firearm suicides and firearm homicides, and the rate of all homicides all decreased significantly.
The authors conclude that passage and enforcement of stricter gun control laws are associated with decreases in suicide and homicide rates. The authors note there is evidence that some people switched methods of suicide in response to the change in gun laws.
|
Type of Injury |
Prior to Bill C-17 |
After Bill C-17 |
Total Suicide Rate |
13.11 |
12.95 |
Firearm Suicide Rate |
4.09 |
3.17* |
Non-Firearm Suicide Rate |
9.02 |
9.76* |
% of Suicides Using A Firearm |
31.20 |
24.50* |
Total Homicide Rate |
2.04 |
1.71* |
Firearm Homicide Rate |
0.69 |
0.57* |
Non-Firearm Homicide Rate |
1.35 |
1.15* |
% of Homicides Using a Firearm |
33.70% |
32.99% |
All rates given as per 100,000 population
* indicates a statistically significant difference
(Source: Bridges FS. Psychological Reports 2004 94:819-826)
Historically in Canada, the incidence of violent crimes has shown an overall increase until the early 1990s, with large decreases in the years since. Rates of assault, sexual assault, and robbery have all declined since 1993. Declines in violent crime have been most notable among young males. Rates of homicide in Canada have been declining since the mid-1970s. (Source: Statistics Canada)
In 1998, the Canadian Department of Justice released a report titled “Firearms, Accidental Deaths, Suicides and Violent Crime”. The report stated that there were at that time an estimated seven million firearms in Canada, with a household firearm ownership rate of 26%. The report found 3.8 fatal firearm injuries per 100,000 population, and the 80% of these were suicides and 12.4% were homicides, and that the rate of fatal firearm injuries had been decreasing steadily since 1978 (which is, as it turns out, the year Bill C-51 was first implemented). The report stated that the proportion of suicides using a gun had been decreasing for the previous two decades, and that the Canadian experience proves that regulations and restrictions can reduce firearm suicides without reducing the level of firearm ownership. The report found that both the homicide rate and the firearm homicide rate have been decreasing since 1975, but that no single factor could fully explain these decreases. While robberies had been increasing in Canada, the percentage of robberies involving a firearm had been decreasing. The report says that research into the impact of changes to firearm laws in 1977, 1991, and 1995 on crime statistics is so far inconclusive, and more research is needed.
(Source: Department of Justice Canada, 1998)
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