By Elliott Brack, editor and publisher | You tell me: why do we have so much talk about gun control, shootings and deaths in the United States, when automobile accident deaths are just as prevalent, actually slight more, than gun deaths?
Don’t get me wrong: the mounting gun deaths are not to be taken lightly. Our country needs to find common grounds for solving this problem, while at the same time maintaining our Second Amendment rights. Getting the National Rifle Association to the table may be the hardest job.
The latest figures from the Centers for Disease Control (2013) show both auto deaths and firearms deaths are neck-and neck, with auto traffic deaths per 100,000 at 10.7. Gun related deaths are 10.6 per 100,000. In raw numbers, autos accidents killed 33,804 in 2013, while firearms deaths were 33,636.
Both figures should be unacceptable to our nation.
Yet there is even a larger threat to our population. That’s the poisoning deaths of all kinds, from overdoses, from illegal substances, or deaths from legal drugs. All those deaths account for 15.4 per 100,000, or 48,545 deaths in the year 2013, more than gun or auto deaths.
We cite the figures to show the extent of the mortality from other than natural causes in our country. Added together, that’s 36.7 deaths per 100,0000, or 115,985 of the 160,945 injury deaths in 2013. This accounts for 72 percent of these uncommon deaths.
Recently in the metro area we have had five unnecessary deaths because of one underlying factor: police chasing a vehicle.
The first deadly accident was in Norcross, as Johns Creek police were chasing a vehicle, with the collision occurring on Peachtree Parkway at Jay Bird Alley, killing two elderly and distinguished Norcross residents. The other deadly incident was a few days later, as police chased a car from College Park into Southwest Atlanta, killing three children.
Now think: are these police chases really necessary? In both cases, these chases were far more detrimental to society than the reason for the police to go after relatively minor incidents.
Both chases went far beyond the original jurisdiction boundaries. Government has long allowed chases under certain circumstances. These unnecessary deaths make this the time to re-think the subject of police chasing vehicles.
The danger in the chases is that police seem all too often to chase routinely, no matter how much risk they put on oncoming or slower-moving motorists. Five deaths within two weeks in Metro Atlanta highlights this.
We need to rid ourselves of the idea of allowing police chases. What they accomplish is minor, compared to the persons maimed for life or killed in such chases.
We cringe at the thought of more laws coming to the rescue. Yet we would support legislation aimed at limiting police chases to within the borders of the government where the reason for the chase took place.
In order words, limit Johns Creek police to chasing within their city borders. Or College Park police being not allowed to chase past their boundaries.
Just recently, we’ve seen three children killed in one chase, two seniors killed in another. Bring on the legislation to require police chases be limited to the jurisdiction where the chase begins. Put some teeth into this, by citing police if they violate this limit.
A few people getting away is far better than more unnecessary deaths from police chases.
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