Report: Concealed Carry On The Rise, Murder On The Decline

concealed carry
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A report set to be released on July 15 shows that concealed carry permits have surged since 2007, while at the same time murders and violent crime have decreased by “25 percent.”

The study was conducted by the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC).

According the The Washington Times, the CPRC study shows the number of concealed carry permits increased “from 4.6 million [in 2007] to over 12.8 million” now. And the number of permits sought increases with each passing year.

For example, “over 1.7 million new permits were issued [in 2014],” which represents a “15.4 percent increase” over the number issued the year before.  The CPRC report also shows that concealed carry permits are no longer just a guy thing, either. Rather, since 2007 “permits for women have increased by 270 percent” while permits for men have increased “by 156 percent.”

Throughout this surge in concealed carry permitting, murder and violent crime rates have fallen. The rate for murder fell from “5.6 to 4.2 per 100,000, about a 25 percent drop.” Violent crime fell “25 percent” as well.

National Shooting Sports Foundation senior vice president Larry Keene committed on the findings, saying:

It puts the lie to the myth promulgated by anti-gun individuals that somehow more law-abiding citizens carrying guns will lead to more crime. In fact, quite the opposite is the case.More law-abiding citizens own firearms for self-protection and crime continues to decline.

In December 2013 Breitbart News reported on a Congressional Research Service (CRS) study that showed a similar pattern based solely on gun ownership. The study showed that the number of privately owned guns in America went from 192 million firearms in 1994 to 310 million firearms in 2009, and crime fell sharply during that time.

The murder rate of 6.6 per 100,000 Americans in 1993 fell to 3.6 in 2000 and finally as low as 3.2 in 2011.

Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.

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