Former ATF Special Agent Responds To TX Sheriff’s Fallacious Claim That More Guns Would Have Stopped The Manchester Bombing

May 24, 2017

May 24, 2017 — As our nation mourns the terror attack in Manchester, David Chipman, Senior Policy Advisor at Americans for Responsible Solutions and a retired ATF special agent, released the following statement regarding Texas Sheriff Tracy Murphree’s fallacious claim that the Manchester bombing would never have happened if Europe had more guns and people were better armed.

”There’s no evidence to back up the claim that fewer gun violence prevention policies would have in any way prevented this tragic terror attack or protected innocent lives. In fact, the opposite is true: America has higher rates of homicide than the U.K. and here in the United States, two-thirds of homicides involve firearms. Active shooter terrorist attacks in the United States have become extremely deadly and tragically frequent. The facts speak for themselves: when guns are more accessible by dangerous people, there are higher rates of gun homicide and homicide overall. “The gun lobby inaccurately argues that civilians can effectively use guns to stop mass shootings despite a lack of evidence, while their agenda would force their allies in the White House and Congress to break their commitments to law enforcement agencies – the men and women who put their lives on the line to keep Americans safe from exactly these kinds of tragedies. “Rather than send more people who pose a threat to our communities into our neighborhoods with weapons of war, we should focus on giving local law enforcement the resources they need and arming them with laws and policies that are proven to stop terror attacks, prevent violence and keep Americans safe.”