NCJ Number
118892
Date Published
1986
Length
13 pages
Annotation
A self-administered questionnaire completed by a sample of 1,982 inmates imprisoned in 10 States was used to determine firearms ownership and carrying practices among four groups of potential inmate "socialization agents:" fathers, siblings, "the people you hung around with before you came to this prison," and "the men in your family."
Abstract
Approximately 70 percent of the fathers of the inmates are reported to have owned a rifle or shotgun; more than one-half owned a handgun; a cross-tabulation of the two items shows that 75 percent had fathers who owned some sort of firearm. Among handgun-owning fathers, about three-fifths carried handguns outside the home. About one-half of the fathers showed their sons how to shoot guns, and about the same proportion gave their sons firearms as gifts. Judging from all the data, however, the critical variable affecting criminal uses and abuses of firearms is the prevalence of guns among the felon's peer group, i.e., the number of his friends and associates who owned or carried firearms. The "friends" variable correlated strongly and consistently with the criminal use of guns. 6 tables.