Study: Having gun ups risk of being shot

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- People who possess a gun during an assault were 4.5 times more likely to be shot than those not possessing a firearm, U.S. researchers said.

"This study helps resolve the long-standing debate about whether guns are protective or perilous," study author Charles C. Branas, an associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, said in a statement. "Will possessing a firearm always safeguard against harm or will it promote a false sense of security?"

The researchers investigated the link between being shot in an assault and a person's possession of a gun at the time of the shooting.

They randomly selected 677 cases of Philadelphia residents who were shot in an assault from 2003-2006, as identified by police and medical examiners. Six percent of these cases were in possession of a gun -- such as in a holster, pocket, waistband, or vehicle -- when shot.

The shooting cases were matched to Philadelphia residents who acted as the study's controls. To identify the controls, trained phone canvassers called random Philadelphians soon after a reported shooting.

"The U.S. has at least one gun for every adult," Branas noted. "This study should be the beginning of a better investment in gun injury research through various government and private agencies."