FBI Misses Mark: Civilians Stopped Far More Active Shooters Than Reported

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

New research reveals that the FBI has severely underestimated the number of times armed civilians stopped active shooters from 2014 to 2023.

While the FBI claimed just 4% of these incidents were halted by civilians, the actual number is at least 35%, and it’s over 51.5% in areas without gun-free zones.

Details!

The Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) has uncovered some shocking discrepancies in the FBI’s reports on active shooting incidents.

From 2014 to 2023, the FBI stated that armed civilians intervened in just 4% of these situations.

However, CPRC’s deep dive into the data shows that civilians actually stopped at least 35% of these attacks. And if you exclude gun-free zones, where law-abiding citizens can’t carry firearms, that number jumps to over 51.5%.

So, what went wrong? CPRC found two major issues: the FBI misclassified several shootings and completely overlooked dozens of others.

In some cases, the FBI didn’t credit armed citizens for stopping an attack simply because the police later arrested the suspect. In other instances, they incorrectly identified civilians as security personnel or failed to mention their involvement at all.

Take the 2019 shooting at the West Freeway Church of Christ in Texas, for example. Jack Wilson, a churchgoer carrying a gun, stopped the attacker.

But the FBI didn’t list this as a civilian stopping an active shooter; they said it was handled by security.

Wilson, however, was a volunteer, not a professional security guard, which makes a big difference in how this incident should be classified.

The FBI also missed 39 incidents where civilians likely prevented mass shootings and another 126 active shooter cases entirely. This underreporting paints a skewed picture of how often civilians play a crucial role in stopping these attacks.

One key reason the numbers are off? The FBI’s reports don’t consider whether the incidents occurred in gun-free zones.

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When guns are banned, law-abiding citizens can’t intervene, so naturally, the percentage of civilians stopping shooters in those areas is lower.

CPRC’s data clearly shows that when civilians can carry guns legally, they stop a significant number of attacks.

What’s even more troubling is that the FBI hasn’t corrected these errors, despite being notified multiple times.

The CPRC reached out to both the FBI and Texas State University’s Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center (which helps compile the reports), but so far, no one’s responded.

This new research challenges the idea that civilian intervention in active shootings is rare. In reality, armed citizens are making a big difference, often saving lives before police can arrive.

The findings also suggest that if we eliminated gun-free zones, we might see even more attacks stopped by everyday people carrying legally owned firearms.

Conclusion:

The FBI’s reports on active shooter incidents missed the mark by a wide margin, underreporting the crucial role that armed civilians have played in stopping these attacks.

As debates over public safety continue, these findings could shift the conversation, emphasizing the importance of armed citizens in preventing mass shootings.

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