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Argument: Citizen gun ownership acts as a deterrent against criminals

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  • The National Institute of Justice sponsored: Sheley & Wright, “In the Line of Fire”, 1995 – This survey of incarcerated felons, both juvenile and adult, found that Large percentages of the felons replied that they often feared potential victims might be armed, and that they had aborted violent crimes because of this fear. It also concluded that “the felons most frightened ‘about confronting an armed victim’ were those from states with the greatest relative number of privately owned firearms.'” This all leads to the conclusion that the proliferation of guns among “good” citizens can have a deterrent effect on criminals, and lead to lower levels of crime.