The long-gun registry and spousal homicide

The long-gun registry and spousal homicide
Gary Mauser
The Conservatives’ pledge to end the long-gun registry this fall when Parliament reconvenes is
already prompting howls that the heartless Tories are removing an important tool that protects
vulnerable women. Such claims may make good sound bites, but they are not factually based.
This conclusion is buttressed by a special request to Statistics Canada I made in July concerning
spousal homicides since 1995. In my analysis I found no support for the claim that the long-gun
registry has been effective. As far as I can determine, the long-gun registry has not saved a single
woman’s life. For further analysis see Bill C-391 - Countering Ten Misleading Claims, which is
available at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1599705
The long-gun registry
For the long-gun registry to be effective it must help keep guns away from potentially violent
people, alert the police that dangerous weapons are present when they are called to a residence,
or help the police identify the murderer after the fact. Any one of these would be important.
The long-gun registry fails all of these tests. The long-gun registry cannot keep guns away from
violent people, as it is simply a list of ordinary rifles and shotguns. Anyone who thinks the
registry offers protection is probably confusing it with the criminal record check, that is
conducted as part of licensing, which actually is useful in identifying people who should not
have firearms.
Second, the police cannot trust the registry to alert them that a long gun is present when they
approach a residence because only about half of all long-guns in Canada are registered.
BECAUSE THEY ARE IN THE HANDS OF PERSONS THAT HAVE NEVER BEEN
LICENCED AND POLICE HAVE NO AUTHORITY TO TRACK THE WHERABOUTS OF
PERSONS WHO ARE TOO DANGEROUS TO OWN FIREARMS. In addition, the registry
does not specify the location of the firearm. Trusting the registry can get police officers killed.
The firearms that pose the most danger have never been registered.
Third, the long-gun registry is not useful in identifying murderers. Less than 1% of accused
murderers used a long-gun that was in the registry. Only 2% of accused murderers possessed a
valid firearms licence.1
Abolishing the long-gun registry will not change the requirement for gun owners to be screened
and licensed nor will it change the requirement that handguns be registered.
Long guns and spousal homicide
Spousal murderers are opportunistic; they use whatever is available, and normal homes contain
numerous instruments that could be used to facilitate murder. The table shows the variety of
implements used to kill.
1 Breitkreuz, Gary (2006). Firearm by owner and registration, 1997-2005. Special Request,
Homicide Survey, Statistics Canada. Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1908933
Page 1 The long-gun registry and spousal homicide
Gary Mauser
Most spousal murderers have a police record and thus they cannot legally acquire or own a gun.
63% of spousal homicides stem from a history of prior abuse. Two-thirds of adults accused of
homicide were known to have a Canadian criminal record; the majority of these had been
previously convicted of violent offences.2
Long-guns are involved in just 17% of spousal homicides. This proportion gradually declined
over the period of analysis (1995-2009) but, as can be seen in the accompanying charts, it did not
change appreciably with the implementation of the long-gun registry in 2003.
Weapon Used in Spousal Murders (Female Victims Only), 1995-2009
Frequency
Percentage
Knife or other cutting/piercing
implement
281
32%
Hands, feet, etc.
161
18%
Long gun
154
17%
Club/blunt instrument
79
9%
Handgun
72
8%
Ligature (rope, belt, cable, etc.)
45
5%
Fire, boiling liquid, acid
12
1%
Poison, drugs, gas, fumes
11
1%
8
1%
Other gun
29
3%
Other weapons
21
2%
Unknown
22
2%
895
99%
Motor vehicle
Total
Note: The definition of spouse includes legally married, common-law, separated, divorced.
Persons in same-sex relationships are included.
2 Dauvergne, Mia (2005). Homicide in Canada, 2004. Juristat, Stats Can, Vol. 25, No. 6, p. 10. Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1908933
Page 2 The long-gun registry and spousal homicide
Gary Mauser
Trends in spousal homicide
As shown in the accompanying charts, spousal murders (with and without guns) have slowly
been declining since the mid-1970s. An aging society simply has fewer murderers. There is no
empirical support for the claim that the long-gun registry has reduced spousal homicides.
Spousal homicides, both sexes, 1974 - 2009
140
120
Number of Victims
100
80
60
40
20
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985
1984
1983
1982
1981
1980
1979
1978
1977
1976
1975
1974
0
Source: Homicide Survey, Statistics Canada
As may be seen in the second chart, total spousal homicides have declined faster than spousal
homicides with long guns. This suggests that any decline in homicides involving long guns is
driven by demographics not gun laws.
Page 3 The long-gun registry and spousal homicide
Gary Mauser
Spousal homicides, female victims, 1995 - 2009
*!"
)!"
Number of Victims
(!"
'!"
&!"
Total
Long gun
%!"
$!"
#!"
!"
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Source: Homicide Survey, Statistics Canada, Special Request, July 2011
The Author Gary Mauser is professor emeritus in the Faculty of Business Administration and a member of the Institute for Canadian Urban Research Studies, at Simon Fraser University. He received his Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of California, Irvine. Some of his significant publications include, “Would Banning Firearms Reduce Murder and Suicide? A Review of International Evidence,” Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, (with Don B. Kates, 2007), Hubris in the North, the Canadian Firearms Registry, published by The Fraser Institute (2007), “An Evaluation of the 1977 Canadian Firearms Legislation: Robbery Involving a Firearm,” Applied Economics (with Dennis Maki, 2003). Important earlier publications are Canadian Attitudes Toward Gun Control: The Real Story, The Mackenzie Institute, (with Taylor Buckner, 1997), and “Armed Self Defense: the Canadian Case,” Journal of Criminal Justice, (1996). He is a member of Public Safety Minister Vic Toews’ Firearms Advisory Committee and has been invited to make presentations to the Canadian House of Commons, the Senate of Canada, and United Nations Conferences on Small Arms and Light Weapons. He has testified as an expert witness before the Supreme Court of Canada. Page 4