Gun Advocates Praise Study Showing Citizens Stop More Mass Shooters Than Police

Armed citizens frequently stop mass shooters, “More Guns, Less Crime” author John Lott claims. That proves Wyoming was right to eliminate gun-free zones, some say. Others question Lott’s research.  

By Mark Heinz

People legally carrying concealed firearms stop more mass shootings than police do, nationally-known gun rights researcher John Lott claims.

That’s proof that Wyoming made the right decision in repealing its gun-free zones, gun rights advocate Mark Jones of Buffalo told Cowboy State Daily.

However, gun control advocate Devin Hughes of Washington, D.C., argued that Lott’s research and conclusions are flawed, and having more firearms around increases danger. 

In a recent article by Lott published in The Federalist, he claims that 51.5 % of active shootings between 2014 and 2023 were stopped by civilians with permits to carry concealed firearms. 

Police stopped 44.6% of those shootings, Lott claims. 

Lott No Stranger To Wyoming Gun Debates

Lott is probably best-known for his book, “More Guns, Less Crime” – in which argues in favor of law-abiding citizens being armed. 

Over the past few legislative sessions, there were attempts to pass bills repealing Wyoming’s gun-free zones, and Lott’s research was frequently cited.

His claim that up to 94% of mass shootings take place in gun-free zones was cited numerous times by Wyomingites arguing for the elimination of gun-free zones. 

Supporters of gun-free zones pushed back, claiming that Lott used sketchy research methods to reach that conclusion.

During a Feb. 18 debate before a legislative committee over House Bill 172, Lott appeared via Zoom, prepared to defend his research. 

He was shut down by legislators upon hitting the allotted two-minute time limit for each person’s testimony. 

HB 172 passed both chambers of the legislature. Gov. Mark Gordon on Feb. 27 allowed the bill to pass into law without signing it. He also slammed legislators, saying the bill amounted to power grab. 

The repeal of gun-free zones is set to take effect on July 1. 

‘Good Guys With Guns’

Lott’s data on stopping mass shooters, through the Crime Prevention Research Center, is more proof that eliminating gun-free zones will make Wyoming safer, Jones said.

Evidence suggests that when killers plan their shooting sprees, they frequently choose places where they know civilians won’t be armed, said Jones, national director for Gun Owners of America (GOA).

 Wyoming isn’t an outlier in its approach to gun rights, he added.

“I think it’s important to realize, Wyoming hasn’t just done something that no other state has done” in repealing gun-free zones, he said.

Lawmakers in several other states also seem to realize that Lott is correct in his claims that armed citizens deter mass shooters and other violent criminals, Jones said.

Gun-control advocates will skew mass shooting data by including incidents such as “when two gangs are shooting at each other in the street, in a drug war,” he said.

However, “almost any way you look at the numbers, good guys with guns help deter bad guys with guns,” Jones said.

Arms Race

Hughes argued that Lott is the one who is skewing numbers to match his claims.

In his research on mass shootings, “road rage” incidents and other violent crime, Lott tends to cherry-pick only incidents where firearms were used defensibly, and ignores the rest, Hughes said.

Using the correct numbers indicates that armed citizens successfully intervened in about 4% of mass shootings, said Hughes, the founder and president of GVPedia, a nonprofit that specializes in gun violence research.

Concealed carry has become more common across the country, because the “gun lobby has engaged in a disinformation campaign,” he said.

The gun lobby claims that firearms make people safer, but in many cases, they don’t, Hughes said.

While there are examples of legitimate self-defense with firearms, overall, more people carrying guns typically makes things worse, he said.

If criminals know that more people are armed, they are more likely to start carrying guns themselves, ratcheting up the chances for bloodshed, he said.

The arms race between law-abiding citizens and criminals is also mirrored in an arms race between street gangs, which ends up in “both sides armed to the teeth,” he said.

Civilians who carry concealed firearms might not have all the skills and training that police have, he added. 

That includes such things as regular training in shooting, as well as learning how to deescalate potentially violent situations, Hughes said. 

Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.