Suicides Account For More Than Half of Gun Deaths

Suicides accounted for 55 percent of all gun-related deaths in 2005, according to newly released statistics from the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control. Public health officials say suicides and homicides are significantly more likely to occur in households where a gun is present. The new CDC finding comes out less than a week after the Supreme Court ruled for the first time in U.S. history that individuals have a Constitutional right to keep handguns in their homes.

Public opinion surveys on gun control reveal conflicting attitudes, with Americans near equally split on whether having a gun in the house makes it a safer or more dangerous place to be. While most favor stricter gun legislation, just one-third want a complete ban. About four in 10 say they have a gun in their house, and of those, two-thirds say they use it for protection against crime.