Gun deaths outpace vehicle deaths

COEUR d'ALENE — There were more gun deaths than motor vehicle deaths in Idaho during 2014, according to a report released Monday.

Idaho is joined by 20 other states, as well as the District of Columbia, where gun deaths outpaced motor vehicle deaths. In 2014, the most recent year for which data is available, there were 213 gun deaths in Idaho, and 212 motor vehicle deaths.

The analysis comes from the Violence Policy Center, a group that believes "the answer to reducing gun violence lies in applying the decades-long lessons of public health injury prevention and consumer product safety regulation to the gun industry and its products." In the five years the VPC has compared the two statistics, the number of states where gun deaths have exceeded motor vehicle deaths has risen from 10 states to 21.

"Firearms are the only consumer product the federal government does not regulate for health and safety," said Kristen Rand, VPC legislative director, in a news release. "Meanwhile, science-based regulations have dramatically reduced deaths from motor vehicles in recent decades. It's well past time that we regulate firearms for health and safety just like all other consumer products."

For the purposes of the study, gun deaths include gun suicides, homicides, and fatal unintentional shootings. Motor vehicle deaths include both occupants and pedestrians.

Data for the analysis was obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.