LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE

(12-minute Read) — In the ongoing national conversation about firearms, one critical statistic often receives insufficient attention: defensive gun uses (DGUs). These instances—where law-abiding citizens use firearms to protect themselves, their families, or others from threats—represent the positive side of gun ownership that rarely makes headlines. While tragic misuses of firearms dominate news cycles, the countless cases where guns serve their intended protective purpose remain largely untold.

The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution recognizes the fundamental right of Americans to keep and bear arms, a right that has been affirmed by the Supreme Court as an individual right in landmark decisions such as District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) and McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010). This constitutional protection exists primarily because the founders understood that an armed citizenry serves as both a check against tyranny and a means of personal protection.

But just how often do Americans use firearms defensively? The answer has profound implications for public policy, constitutional rights, and personal safety decisions. This article examines the research, methodologies, and facts about defensive gun uses in America today.

The Challenge of Counting Defensive Gun Uses

Quantifying defensive gun uses presents significant methodological challenges. Unlike crimes, which are typically reported to and recorded by law enforcement agencies, many defensive gun uses go unreported. This happens for several reasons:

1. Many DGUs involve merely brandishing a firearm without firing it, with the threat alone deterring the potential attacker.
2. Some gun owners fear legal complications if they report an incident, even when their actions were justified.
3. In many jurisdictions, defensive uses that don’t result in injury or death might not be officially categorized as DGUs.
4. Survey respondents may have different interpretations of what constitutes a “defensive” use.

These factors create a significant gap between official statistics and real-world occurrences, making comprehensive research challenging but essential.

Major Studies and Their Findings

Several major studies have attempted to quantify defensive gun uses in America, using different methodologies and producing varying results. Let’s examine the most influential research:

The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)

The National Crime Victimization Survey, conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, produces some of the most conservative estimates of defensive gun uses. The NCVS methodology involves interviewing a nationally representative sample of approximately 90,000 households comprising nearly 160,000 individuals on the frequency, characteristics, and consequences of criminal victimization.

According to NCVS data, there are approximately 60,000 to 120,000 defensive gun uses annually in the United States [1]. This lower-end estimate comes from a methodology that primarily focuses on crimes that were reported to the police, potentially missing many defensive uses that citizens chose not to report.

Critics of the NCVS methodology point out that the survey doesn’t directly ask about defensive gun uses, instead requiring respondents to first indicate they were the victim of a crime before any questions about defensive actions are posed. This approach may significantly undercount incidents where a crime was deterred before it occurred.

The Kleck-Gertz Study

On the higher end of estimates is the seminal 1995 study by criminologists Gary Kleck and Marc Gertz, which found approximately 2.5 million defensive gun uses annually in the United States [2]. Their research used a random digit dial telephone survey specifically designed to measure defensive gun uses, asking direct questions about whether respondents had used a firearm defensively in the previous year.

Kleck and Gertz implemented numerous methodological safeguards to prevent false positives, including:

• Detailed follow-up questions about the specific circumstances of each reported incident
• Exclusion of cases that seemed implausible based on inconsistencies
• Conservative coding of ambiguous responses

Their findings suggested that defensive gun uses were far more common than gun crimes, with the vast majority of defensive uses involving merely brandishing a firearm rather than firing it.

CDC-Commissioned Research

In 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) commissioned a study through the National Academies’ Institute of Medicine and National Research Council, which examined existing research on gun violence. This study acknowledged the wide range of estimates for defensive gun uses, stating: “Defensive uses of guns by crime victims is a common occurrence, although the exact number remains disputed. Almost all national survey estimates indicate that defensive gun uses by victims are at least as common as offensive uses by criminals, with estimates of annual uses ranging from about 500,000 to more than 3 million per year” [3].

This admission from a government agency not typically associated with pro-gun positions lends credibility to the higher-range estimates of defensive gun uses.

The NCVS Redesign and Other Recent Research

In recent years, methodological improvements to the NCVS and other surveys have attempted to address previous limitations. A 2021 reanalysis of NCVS data using expanded definitions found approximately 300,000 defensive gun uses annually [4], a figure significantly higher than earlier NCVS estimates but still lower than Kleck’s findings.

Meanwhile, firearm researcher John Lott’s Crime Prevention Research Center has compiled numerous cases of defensive gun uses from media reports and law enforcement records, suggesting that even lower-bound estimates likely undercount the true frequency of such incidents [5].

Beyond the Numbers: Qualitative Aspects of Defensive Gun Uses

Raw numbers tell only part of the story. The nature and context of defensive gun uses provide critical insight into their social value:

Lives Saved vs. Statistical Counting

Perhaps the most important aspect of defensive gun uses is their life-saving potential. Research suggests that victims who defend themselves with firearms are less likely to be injured or lose property compared to those who either don’t defend themselves or use other protective strategies [6]. This suggests that the social benefit of defensive gun uses extends beyond their frequency—each instance potentially represents a life saved or a violent crime prevented.

Vulnerable Populations and Equalizing Force

Firearms serve as what some researchers call “the great equalizer,” allowing physically vulnerable individuals—such as women, the elderly, or disabled persons—to effectively defend against stronger attackers. Survey data indicates that women and the elderly use firearms defensively at rates comparable to other demographics when accounting for firearm ownership rates [7], suggesting that gun ownership provides particular benefits to those who might otherwise be at a physical disadvantage when confronted by criminals.

Rural vs. Urban Contexts

Defensive gun uses take on additional importance in rural areas, where law enforcement response times may be significantly longer than in urban centers. For citizens living in remote locations, a firearm may represent the only realistic means of protection during the critical minutes or even hours before police can arrive [8].

Estimating the True Number: A Reasonable Approach

Given the wide range of estimates from different methodologies, determining the most likely number of annual defensive gun uses requires a balanced assessment of the available evidence.

The lowest credible estimates come from the NCVS, suggesting around 60,000-120,000 annual defensive uses. The highest estimates from Kleck’s research suggest up to 2.5 million. The CDC’s acknowledged range of 500,000 to 3 million provides a broad middle ground.

A reasonable synthesis of this research suggests that the true number likely falls between 500,000 and 1.5 million defensive gun uses annually in the United States. This range acknowledges:

1. The methodological limitations of the NCVS that likely produce undercounts
2. Potential issues with telephone surveys that might lead to some degree of overestimation in the highest figures
3. The consistency of findings across multiple independent research efforts that consistently find numbers significantly higher than the lowest estimates
4. The CDC’s acknowledgment of the significant frequency of defensive gun uses

Breaking Down the Numbers

Using our reasoned estimate of 500,000 to 1.5 million annual defensive gun uses, we can calculate approximate frequency rates:

Monthly Defensive Gun Uses

• Lower estimate: approximately 41,667 DGUs per month (500,000 ÷ 12)
• Higher estimate: approximately 125,000 DGUs per month (1,500,000 ÷ 12)

Weekly Defensive Gun Uses

• Lower estimate: approximately 9,615 DGUs per week (500,000 ÷ 52)
• Higher estimate: approximately 28,846 DGUs per week (1,500,000 ÷ 52)

Daily Defensive Gun Uses

• Lower estimate: approximately 1,370 DGUs per day (500,000 ÷ 365)
• Higher estimate: approximately 4,110 DGUs per day (1,500,000 ÷ 365)

These figures suggest that every day in America, firearms are used defensively between 1,370 and 4,110 times. That means every hour, approximately 57 to 171 Americans protect themselves or others using a firearm. Even using the most conservative end of our estimated range, that’s more than one defensive gun use every minute of every day across the United States.

Policy Implications of Defensive Gun Use Data

The frequency of defensive gun uses has significant implications for public policy debates:

Cost-Benefit Analysis of Gun Restrictions

Any meaningful analysis of proposed gun control measures must account for both potential costs and benefits. If defensive gun uses number in the hundreds of thousands or millions annually, restrictions that limit access to firearms for law-abiding citizens could potentially prevent many instances where guns would otherwise have been used to save lives.

Training and Education

The high frequency of defensive gun uses underscores the importance of proper training and education for gun owners. With potentially millions of defensive situations annually, ensuring that gun owners understand safe handling, appropriate defensive tactics, and relevant legal standards becomes a public safety priority.

The Role of Concealed Carry

Research suggests that a significant portion of defensive gun uses occur outside the home [9], highlighting the importance of legal provisions for concealed carry. As all 50 states now have some form of legal concealed carry, the data on defensive uses provides context for understanding the public safety implications of these laws.

Conclusion: The Defensive Value of the Second Amendment

The evidence regarding defensive gun uses paints a clear picture: firearms in the hands of law-abiding citizens contribute significantly to public safety and personal protection. With a reasoned estimate of between 500,000 and 1.5 million defensive uses annually—translating to between 1,370 and 4,110 instances daily—guns serve their intended defensive purpose far more often than is commonly acknowledged in public discourse.

These numbers provide powerful context for understanding the Second Amendment not merely as a constitutional abstraction, but as a practical protection that enables Americans to safeguard themselves and their loved ones millions of times each year. While every tragedy involving firearms deserves attention and thoughtful response, the countless cases where guns save rather than take lives deserve equal consideration in our national conversation.

The right to keep and bear arms, enshrined in our Constitution and affirmed by the Supreme Court, continues to serve its intended purpose in 21st century America. The data on defensive gun uses confirms what the founders understood: an armed citizenry is better equipped to ensure both personal safety and lasting liberty.

Sources

[1] Bureau of Justice Statistics. “National Crime Victimization Survey, 2018-2022.” U.S. Department of Justice. https://bjs.ojp.gov/data-collection/ncvs

[2] Kleck, G., & Gertz, M. (1995). “Armed Resistance to Crime: The Prevalence and Nature of Self-Defense with a Gun.” Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 86(1), 150-187. https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/jclc/vol86/iss1/8/

[3] Institute of Medicine and National Research Council. (2013). “Priorities for Research to Reduce the Threat of Firearm-Related Violence.” The National Academies Press. https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/18319/priorities-for-research-to-reduce-the-threat-of-firearm-related-violence

[4] Smith, T. (2021). “Reanalysis of National Crime Victimization Survey Data on Defensive Gun Uses.” Journal of Quantitative Criminology. https://link.springer.com/journal/10940

[5] Lott, J. R. (2020). “Gun Control Myths: How politicians, the media, and botched ‘studies’ have twisted the facts on gun control.” Crime Prevention Research Center. https://crimeresearch.org/gun-control-myths/

[6] Tark, J., & Kleck, G. (2004). “Resisting Crime: The Effects of Victim Action on the Outcomes of Crimes.” Criminology, 42(4), 861-909. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1745-9125.2004.tb00539.x

[7] Stroud, A. (2016). “Good Guys With Guns: The Appeal and Consequences of Concealed Carry.” University of North Carolina Press. https://uncpress.org/book/9781469627892/good-guys-with-guns/

[8] Weisheit, R. A., Falcone, D. N., & Wells, L. E. (2005). “Crime and Policing in Rural and Small-Town America.” Waveland Press. https://waveland.com/browse/book/Crime-and-Policing-in-Rural-and-Small-Town-America-3rd-Edition-by-Weisheit-Falcone-Wells

[9] Lott, J. R. (2010). “More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws.” University of Chicago Press. https://www.amazon.com/More-Guns-Less-Crime-Understanding/dp/0226493660