NCJ Number
165314
Journal
Journal of the American Medical Association Volume: 275 Issue: 22 Dated: (June 12, 1996) Pages: 1754-1758
Date Published
1996
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Interviews with a convenience sample of 63 juvenile offenders ages 13-18 in Atlanta were used to determine how, when, where, and why juvenile offenders acquire guns.
Abstract
The interviews were conducted in five detention centers in metropolitan Atlanta between June and November 1995. Results revealed that the average age of the youths was 15.7 years. Forty-one male and 12 female participants had owned a gun. Eighty-four percent of the gun carriers acquired their first gun before age 15. More than half received their first gun passively, without any specific plan to do so. The adolescents who purposefully obtained their first handgun were more likely than the others to become frequent or constant carriers. Forty percent felt safer and 40 percent said they felt more energized, excited, or powerful while carrying a gun. However, 34 percent reported increased anxiety about being caught. Almost all stated that guns are readily available from a wide range of sources. Findings suggested that knowledge of the developmental patterns of gun carrying by delinquent adolescents could be useful in formulating effective strategies to reduce firearm violence. Tables, figures, and 25 references (Author abstract modified)