More shootings are attracting the attention of American voters. That, too, can be said for the candidates running for the White House.
While rallying supporters in San Antonio, Texas recently, Democrat Hillary Clinton said one of the reasons she’s running is to protect families and end gun violence
To articulate her point, the former Secretary of State said, “We lose an average of 90 Americans every day because of guns.”
PolitiFact Florida heard that claim and put it to the Truth-O-Meter.
Writer Joshua Gillin says it received a MOSTLY TRUE rating.
“According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were about 90 handgun deaths or firearm deaths per day in the United States,” Gillin said.
But there is an important distinction to make.
“When we look at this, what we actually find is there’s different categories here,” Gillin said. “Police shootings. There's accidents. Then there’s homicides and then the really big category -- two-thirds of those -- are actually suicides.”
Gillin went on to say Clinton did not make that distinction, which led to a MOSTLY TRUE rating.
SOURCES: Clinton says 90 killed daily by guns
- Article, "FactChecking the Democratic Debate," FactCheck.org, Oct. 14, 2015
- Reports, National Center for Health Statistics, "Deaths: Final Data for 2013," detailed tables; "Deaths: Final Data for 2012," Aug. 31, 2015; "Deaths: Final Data for 2011," July 27, 2015; "Deaths: Final Data for 2010," May 8, 2013; "Deaths: Final Data for 2009," Dec. 29, 2011; "Deaths: Final Data for 2000," Sept. 16, 2002
- Emails, Kenneth D. Kochanek, statistician, Statistical Analysis & Research Team, Mortality Statistics Branch, Division of Vital Statistics, National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Oct. 19, 2015
- Documents showing U.S. firearm deaths, all intents, 1999-2013, CDC WONDER output; U.S. firearm deaths, homicide, 1999-2013, CDC WONDER output (created and provided by email by Kenneth D. Kochanek, Oct. 19, 2015)