RI ranked 2nd lowest gun death rate

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - Rhode Island is considered the state with the second lowest gun death rate in the country.

The Violence Policy Center claims that states with stronger gun laws and lower rates of gun ownership have the lowest firearm death rates. The recent study is based on 2007 data collected from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

The five states ranked with the lowest gun death rates are: Hawaii, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York.

Each of the five states had a per-capita gun death rate far below the national rate.

States with weak gun laws and higher rates of gun ownership had far higher rates of firearm-related death, according to the VPC. Those states included Louisiana, Mississippi, Alaska, Alabama, and Nevada.

Kristen Rand, VPC Legislative Director, says, “The equation is simple. More guns lead to more gun death, but limiting exposure to firearms saves lives.”