Gun consumers in California convicted of driving beneath the affect are at higher threat of committing a violent crime or a firearm-related offense, a gaggle of researchers at UC Davis discovered in a broad examine that tracks gun purchasers over the span of a decade.
The examine, which monitored individuals who purchased weapons in 2001 till 2013, builds on earlier analysis that warns of a disturbing connection between alcohol use and gun violence. But the newest work depends on a bigger pattern of almost 80,000 information on authorized handgun consumers.
Researchers discovered that three p.c of purchasers with a previous DUI conviction engaged in violent crime with a firearm, in accordance to the findings published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. By comparability, solely 0.5 p.c of individuals with no prior arrests or convictions dedicated a violent crime with a firearm.
“What we’re finding is that having a DUI at the time of purchase is actually an indicator of increased risk for future violence. We think that in itself is very important,” mentioned Rose Kagawa, an assistant professor who led the examine and researcher on the UC Davis Violence Prevention Program.
“Compared with purchasers who had no prior criminal history, purchasers with only DUI convictions and no other criminal history had nearly three times the risk of arrest for firearm-related violent crime.”