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Prior DUIs predict future criminal activity among firearm owners

Dennis Brownstein’s Extreme court News (And other things too)

The “Science Daily” says prior DUIs predict future Criminal Activity among firearm Owners

Among individuals who legally purchased handguns in California, prior convictions for driving under the influence (DUI) and other alcohol-related crimes were associated with a substantial increase in risk for subsequent violent or firearm-related crime, according to a study published Jan. 30 in Injury Prevention by the UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program.

Many prior studies of the general population have established strong associations between acute alcohol intoxication or a history of alcohol abuse and an increased risk for suicide, homicide and other forms of violence using firearms.

They also have shown that DUI offenders have a high prevalence of excessive alcohol consumption and alcohol-use disorders and are more likely to engage in criminal activity, including violence and weapon-related crimes.

The UC Davis study, however, is the first to associate the misuse of alcohol with future criminal activity among legal firearm owners, a group that is also more likely than others to report excessive alcohol consumption. The research, along with similar studies now under way that are larger and rely on more current data, may help inform the development of violence prevention measures focused on access to firearms by high-risk individuals.

“We found prior DUI and other alcohol-related convictions among legal handgun owners in California increased the risk of arrest for a violent or firearm-related crime fourfold to fivefold,” said Garen Wintemute, professor of emergency medicine and director of the UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program. “The increase in risk was large and independent of other well-known risk factors for future violence. This suggests that prior convictions for alcohol-related crime may be an important predictor of risk for future criminal activity among firearm owners.”

Contrary to the results of some previously published studies, the extent of the increase in risk of future arrest was not related to the number of prior alcohol-related convictions. The relative increase in risk associated with alcohol-related convictions was greater than those associated with younger age, male sex and a prior history of violence.

Read UC Davis Study here: https://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/publish/news/newsroom/11758

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