On its initial publication in 1998, this title drew both lavish praise and heated criticism. More than a decade later, it continues to play a key role in ongoing arguments over gun-control laws. Despite all the attacks by gun-control advocates, no one has ever been able to refute the author's conclusion that more guns mean less crime. Relying on the most rigorously comprehensive data analysis ever conducted on crime statistics and right-to-carry laws, the book directly challenges common perceptions about the relationship of guns, crime, and violence. This third edition draws on an additional ten years of data, including analysis of the effects of gun bans in Chicago and Washington, D.C. that brings it fully up to date and further bolsters its central contention.

Preface to the third edition -- Preface to the second edition -- Preface to the first edition -- Introduction -- How to test the effects of gun control -- Gun ownership, gun laws, and the data on crime -- Concealed-handgun laws and crime rates: the empirical evidence -- The victims and the benefits from protection -- What determines arrest rates and the passage of concealed-handgun laws? -- The political and academic debate -- Some final thoughts -- 1996 update -- A decade later: thirty years of data and nine more states -- Appendixes.