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Gun ownership correlates to gun deaths

Published: April 26, 2008 at 1:14 AM
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A customer (R) examines the Cold Match target gun as a salesman looks on at the Potomac Arms gun store in Alexandria, Virginia in a September 10, 2004 file photo. In the aftermath of the deadly Virginia Tech University rampage, in which 33 people were shot by student Cho Seung-Hui, many are raising questions about lax gun controls in the United States. (UPI Photo/Yuri Gripas/Files) | Enlarge

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WASHINGTON, April 26 (UPI) -- States with high rates of gun ownership have the highest firearm death rates, an analysis by a U.S. non-profit group found.

The Violence Policy Center in Washington used data from 2005 -- the most recent available -- from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The five states with the highest per capita gun death rates -- Louisiana, Alaska, Montana, Tennessee and Alabama -- had a per capita gun death rate far exceeding the national per capita gun death rate of 10.32 per 100,000.

Louisiana had the highest rate of gun death, 19.04 per 100,000 and has household gun ownership of 45.6 percent. Alaska had a gun death rate 17.49 per 100,000 and household gun ownership of 60.6 percent. Montana had a gun death rate of 17.22 per 100,000 and 61.4 percent gun ownership.

Conversely, states with the lowest levels of gun ownership had the lowest levels of gun death rates.

Hawaii has a household gun ownership of 9.7 percent and a gun death rate of 2.20 per 100,000. Massachusetts has 12.8 percent rate of gun ownership and a gun death rate of 3.48 per 100,000. Rhode Island has a household gun ownership of 13.3 percent and a gun death rate of 3.63 per 100,000, the researchers said.