On a per capita basis, every other New England state has a lower gun death rate, as do New York and New Jersey, according to the U.S. In a woodsy state with a strong hunting culture, Rocque also suspects that a relatively high number of guns are rifles or shotguns designed for taking down animals, making it less likely they could be fired for other reasons.īut while Maine has had little gun violence compared to the nation as a whole, it and Vermont still stand out from the rest of the Northeast. That includes a spread out population that’s not as concentrated in urban areas, leaving fewer opportunities for people - especially young men - to come into contact and clash. Maine’s outlier status could owe to a couple characteristics associated with lower rates of gun homicides, according to Rocque. Meanwhile, states such Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Mississippi, Tennessee and Utah have gun ownership and death rates that are both above-average. “We're pretty confident that Maine does have a relatively high gun ownership rate, and yet a very low, especially, homicide rate, very, very low, one of the lowest in the nation,” Rocque says. Other states in that narrow category include Vermont, South Dakota and Wisconsin. While studies have estimated that about half of Maine households have guns - above the national average of 32%, according to Boston University data - it’s part of a small cluster of states with below-average gun death rates despite that abundance. Why has Maine had relatively few gun deaths? “We have to also consider that the lax gun laws also make it easy for people to get guns and commit deeds elsewhere,” says Rocque, who notes that there have been many other instances of guns obtained in Maine being used in violent acts outside the state. After a 51-year-old man obtained two handguns and a semiautomatic rifle in the town of Houlton, he used them during a rampage that left 22 people dead in Nova Scotia two years ago. But they were tied to domestic violence in private settings, which are among the reasons that many devastating shootings don’t grab national headlines.Īdditionally, firearms obtained in northern Maine fueled the deadliest mass shooting in Canada’s history. I would say that we have been lucky that mass public shootings haven't taken place.”Īs part of his research, Rocque has identified a couple cases in which people threatened to shoot up places such as schools and businesses in Maine.Īnd the state has had at least two events that could be classified as “mass shootings” in the last decade, in Madison and Saco, which each left at least four people dead. “There doesn't seem to be much that would make Maine special in terms of being immune to mass public shootings. “It's not like we're the same state, but in terms of population being spread out, cold, northern states, you know, we're not that different from Alaska,” Rocque said. He pointed to another rural state with lax firearm restrictions, Alaska, that does have many gun deaths. In an interview, Rocque noted that it’s still relatively easy for someone to get a firearm in Maine, despite a compromise “yellow flag” law passed a couple years ago that allows them to be seized from people with a documented mental health condition who are found to have threatened themselves or others. Bates College Michael Rocque, associate professor of sociology at Bates College.
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