Criminal Justice Quote: More Guns, Less Gun Control

     A new Pew Research Center survey finds that, for the first time in their surveys, the majority of Americans oppose more gun control. Gallup and CNN pols tell a similar story. Opposition to gun control has been increasing over at least the last couple of decades…

     Perceptions have changed dramatically, with most people now believing the "More Gun, Less Crime" hypothesis. Gallup recently asked Americans if they thought residents are safer with a gun in the home. People answered "Yes" by a margin of 63 to 30 percent. In 2000, Americans gave just the opposite answer by a margin of 51 to 35 percent. In 2013, sixty percent of gun owners listed "Personal Safety/Protection" as the reason for owning a gun.

     Academic research aligns with current public opinion. If you have a gun in the home, that gun is more likely to prevent murder than it is to be used in an accidental shooting or to kill a loved one…

     Between 2000 and 2014, the number of concealed handgun permits soared from about 2.7 million to well over 12 million…According to Gallup, 42 percent of American now have a gun in the house...The Pew Research Center survey found that 57 percent of Americans believe gun ownership "protects people from becoming victims of crime. Thirty-eight percent believe that it "puts people at risk."

     Support for gun ownership has grown particularly sharply among blacks and women….

"Why Most Americans Oppose More Gun Control," Fox News, December 30, 2014 

Criminal Justice Quote: Family Dollar Stores in St. Louis Area Ban Hoodies

     Some Family Dollar stores in the St. Louis area have been experimenting with signs asking customers to take off their hoodies before they enter the stores. The signs read: "All Customers: Please remove hoods before entering Family Dollar." Managers at Family Dollar stores would not reveal the reasoning for the signs. However, the signs seem likely to be a response to an outbreak of shoplifting and armed robbery at St. Louis-area Family Dollar stores.

     For example, a man allegedly held an employee at gunpoint during a December 2014 robbery at a Family Dollar store on South Jefferson Street in St. Louis. At another area store on South Grand Avenue someone started shooting a gun…

     Some customers think the hoodie ban is discriminatory…Other customers were more supportive of the anti-hooddie signage…

     Family Dollar is a chain of discount variety stores with 8,100 locations in several states across the country. Most of the stores are located in low-income neighborhoods.

"Family Dollar Stores Face Scrutiny For Asking Customers to Remove Hoodies," The Daily Caller, January 5, 2015