Originally Posted by Grappler

And LEGAL gun ownership can have fantastic consequences. Both academic and private survey data show that guns are used defensively 1.5 - 3.4 million times a year. In many of these instances it was simple the act of brandishing the gun that prevented the crime. But you won't hear about this because it is not emotionally gripping enough to be considered "newsworth" by our media. To put it differently, airplane crashes get news coverage. Successful takeoffs and landings to not.

Legal gun ownership deters crime. Numerous studies have been conducted with inmates who admit that if they thought their victim was armed they would not have attacked the victim if they even thought he/she might be armed. A National Institute of Justice survey found that 74% of convicts who committed a violent crime or burglary agreed, saying that the reason they avoid houses when people are home is not the fear of getting caught, but the fear of getting shot.