Why NYC Tragedy Means We Need Gun Rights, Not Gun Control

At the end of July, tragedy struck New York City when a deeply troubled Nevada man drove across the country to a Park Avenue office building and opened fire, killing four people before taking his own life. Police believe the gunman intended to target the National Football League, which is headquartered in the building and which the gunman blamed for the debilitating effects of concussions he sustained while playing high school football.  

Unsurprisingly, state and local officials—including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul—immediately sought to lay responsibility for the shooting at the feet of Second Amendment advocates and the allegedly “lax” gun laws of other states. Their blame is grossly misplaced.

Nothing about the shooting demonstrates that the rest of the nation needs New York’s unconstitutionally restrictive gun laws. Instead, it shows precisely how those restrictive gun laws punish ordinary New Yorkers by forcing them to cede their right to armed self-defense—leaving them in difficult positions when the government and corporate security measures fail to keep them safe.

Almost every major study—including the most recent report on the subject by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—has found that Americans use their firearms in self-defense between 500,000 and 3 million times annually. In 2021, a professor at the Georgetown McDonough School of Business conducted the most comprehensive study ever on the issue and concluded that roughly 1.6 million defensive gun uses occur in the U.S. every year.

For this reason, The Daily Signal publishes a monthly article highlighting some of the previous month’s many news stories on defensive gun use that you may have missed—or that might not have made it to the national spotlight in the first place. (Read accounts from past months and years here.)

The examples below represent only a small portion of the news stories on defensive gun use during crimes that we found in July. You can explore more using The Heritage Foundation’s interactive Defensive Gun Use Database.

• July 2, Richmond, Virginia: Police say that a sedan sideswiped a couple’s pickup truck as they drove with their 9-month-old child in the back seat. When the sedan’s driver didn’t initially stop, the couple followed the car for a while, hoping the driver would eventually pull over to exchange insurance information. Instead, the sedan driver led them through a residential neighborhood to a secluded back alley, where an armed woman pointed a gun at the couple and then passed the gun to the sedan driver, who opened fire. The man driving the truck returned fire to defend himself and his family. At the same time, his unarmed girlfriend heroically hurled herself into the backseat to protect the child. The sedan driver was struck in the leg by gunfire, but neither the couple nor their child were injured.  
• July 5, Jacksonville, Florida: Three masked robbers entered a pawn shop, smashed a display glass case with a hammer, and grabbed nearly $9,000 in jewelry before an armed customer intervened by drawing his concealed handgun and yelling at the robbers to leave the store. One of the robbers raised his hammer and advanced toward the customer, prompting the customer to shoot him once “in the gut.” The robbers ran out of the store, only to be confronted by a different armed witness who fired at them a second time.
• July 6, Redmond, Washington: Employees of a local business saw a man trying to steal one of their cars, which was parked nearby. When the car’s owner confronted the would-be thief, the suspect “became aggressive” and “advanced” on him, prompting the car owner—who police say was legally armed—to shoot the man in self-defense.
• July 9, Kansas City, Missouri: A married couple arrived at an apartment complex after arranging over Facebook Marketplace to purchase a truck from two brothers. However, the sale quickly devolved into an armed robbery when one brother tried to take the husband’s cash at gunpoint and the other threatened him with a knife. As the husband tried to leave, the gun-wielding robber shot at him, hitting him in the ear and arm. The victim’s wife, who witnessed the attack from her vehicle, drew her own gun and returned fire at the robbers, striking one and causing them both to flee. She later helped identify both suspects, who were arrested and charged with a slew of felonies.
• July 10, Sharon, South Carolina: A legally armed driver fatally shot another man outside of a rural Dollar General store, after the man, who police say was also carrying a gun during the incident, “aggressively” approached the driver’s vehicle, threatened him, and punched him. Local officials determined that they won’t file criminal charges, saying his actions constituted lawful self-defense.
• July 13, Grand Prairie, Texas: A woman’s ex-boyfriend forced his way into her home and assaulted her, inflicting significant injuries. Fortunately, she was able to grab a handgun and fatally shoot her attacker. She was hospitalized for the injuries sustained during the assault but is expected to recover.
• July 17, Encino, California: In a neighborhood suffering from a spate of recent high-profile violent burglaries, a homeowner awoke in the early hours of the morning to the sounds of something breaking downstairs. He secured his family in a safe room before arming himself with a handgun and shouting a warning to anyone inside the house. The homeowner then saw a dark-clad intruder advance up the stairs, wielding a crowbar, so he shot at the intruder twice. The intruder fled. Later, police arrested a 14-year-old suspect whose mother reported that he’d been wounded in a drive-by shooting, but whose story didn’t hold up to scrutiny. His blood-splattered stolen car matched the description of the intruder’s getaway vehicle.
• July 18, Sunnyvale, California: Just 24 hours after a jewelry store owner in Anaheim used his firearm to thwart a 20-person “store takeover” heist, a group of approximately 10 serial jewelry store robbers also met armed resistance when they tried to “follow the same playbook” of other mob-style robberies in the area. The robbers rammed a stolen car through the storefront but quickly found themselves confronted by legally armed employees, who sent them fleeing without firing a single shot. Several days later, law enforcement officers arrested five suspects after a similar takeover-robbery attempt at a different store.
• July 24, Spring, Texas: A homeowner shot and wounded a machete-wielding man who tried to enter his house. Police determined that the homeowner’s actions were justified and charged the would-be intruder with aggravated assault and retaliation.
• July 26, Traverse City, Michigan: For reasons that remain unclear, a man with a lengthy criminal past and a history of mental illness went on a stabbing rampage inside a Walmart, stabbing 11 people before bystanders heroically intervened to end the attack. Police say that one unarmed victim rammed the attacker with a shopping cart and another victim with a concealed carry permit drew his gun on the knife-wielding man. Eventually, the bystanders were able to successfully detain the attacker and hold him at gunpoint until police arrived on the scene. Fortunately, all 11 stabbing victims are expected to survive their injuries.
• July 30, Shreveport, Louisiana: When a gunman in illegal possession of a firearm opened fire on another man’s residence, the victim returned fire in self-defense, police say. Despite being hit by a gunshot himself, the armed victim was able to strike and injure the assailant. The assailant—who had a prior felony domestic violence conviction—was arrested and charged with attempted second-degree murder and a weapons offense.

As these examples illustrate, when faced with threats of criminal violence, ordinary civilians are far better off when they have ready access to an armed defense than when they’re forced to rely solely on the government’s intervention.

Instead of blaming Nevada for not implementing laws that wouldn’t have made a difference, New York should look at its own restrictive policies, which frequently prevent ordinary people from exercising their right to keep and bear arms precisely when it matters the most.

Reprinted with permission from The Daily Signal by Amy Swearer.

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.