Universal Background Checks! Gun Violence Restraining Orders!
It’s the new mantra of the gun prohibitionists seeking to disarm Americans, citing the so-called prevalence of mental illness in those who criminally and violently misuse guns.
The reality is far from the gun control activists claims, as noted by a Duke University Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences.
Duke University Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Jeff Swanson cautioned that the link between gun violence against others and diagnosable mental health is, in fact, very small. “Twenty-eight percent of gun-disqualifying records are related to mental health,” he said. “But only 4 percent of those who commit gun violence have a serious mental illness. If we waved a magic wand and eliminated all diagnosable mental health problems, we’d have 96 percent of the same gun violence.”
Further, said Swanson, “If someone has a mental illness and commits a violent crime, the illness might not even be the reason why.”
Which mirrors the national average of 4.1% of the population which has a serious mental illness, per the National Institute of Mental Health.
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