In their manifestos, many mass murderers have explicitly said they looked for targets that had disarmed victims in them. Nevertheless, mainstream-media outlets often leave this fact out.
The Annunciation Catholic School murderer wrote: “I recently heard a rumor that … the Aurora theater shooter, may have chosen venues that were ‘gun-free zones.’ I would probably aim the same way ... .”
“Many of these attackers may be crazy, but none are stupid,” says John Lott, president of the Crime Prevention Research Center. “They know that the more victims they kill, the more coverage they’ll get. That’s why they target places where no one can fight back.”
Far from making people safer, “gun-free” zones make it much more likely that only the attacker will be armed. According to the CPRC, it’s no accident that 92% of mass public shootings occur in gun-free zones where civilians aren’t allowed to carry firearms. The Nashville Covenant School murderer even admitted to avoiding another site because it had too much security. “There was another location that was mentioned, but because of a threat assessment by the suspect of too much security, they decided not to,” said Nashville Police Chief John Drake.
More than 21 million people hold concealed-carry permits, and in the 29 states where some type of constitutional carry is the law, no permit is required. Yet these armed citizens can’t legally carry in “gun-free” zones.
