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Crime/offence type (Tables 1 and 1A)
3.1 In 1998 the police recorded 985 offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used, a decrease of 17 per cent when compared with the figure of 1,187 recorded in 1997 and the lowest such figure recorded since 1989. The largest category of offence involving the use of a firearm in 1998 was vandalism, which constituted around 27 per cent of all recorded firearms offences, though this proportion is smaller than in 1997, as the number of recorded vandalism offences decreased by 26 per cent from 356 to 263 offences. The size of this category reflects the large use of airweapons which, when fired, result mainly in property damage. Between 1997 and 1998 the number of recorded robberies in which a firearm was alleged to have been used decreased marginally by 3 per cent from 139 to 135 offences. The number of recorded assaults decreased by 15 per cent from 252 in 1997 to 213 in 1998. The number of offences recorded under the Firearms Act 1968 e.g. the offence of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life, commit crime etc. and other miscellaneous firearms offences, decreased by 13 per cent from 140 in 1997 to 122 in 1998. Table 1A details the number of offences involving firearms other than airweapons. Here, the numbers decreased by 21 per cent to total 319 in 1998. The pattern of offences once those involving airweapons are excluded is rather different. The largest category of offences is robbery, at 38 per cent. The number of offences of vandalism involving a firearm other than an airweapon is very small, though the number increased from 18 to 29 offences in 1998, an increase of 61 per cent.
Proportion of crimes/offences involving firearms (Table 2)
3.2 Firearms are used in only a small and decreasing proportion of recorded offences. In 1998, 7 per cent of recorded homicides, 3 per cent of attempted murders and less than 3 per cent of robberies involved the alleged use of a firearm. The use of a firearm in most other types of offence was even less common, with firearms being used in less than half a per cent of both assault and vandalism offences.
Type of firearm (Table 3)
3.3 In 1998, as in previous years, an airweapon was the most commonly used firearm. Airweapons accounted for over two thirds of all offences involving firearms in 1998. The total number of offences which involved the use of an airweapon decreased by 15 per cent from 783 in 1997 to 666 in 1998. The second most common category of firearm was a pistol/revolver - used in 12 per cent of recorded offences in 1998. Though the number of offences involving the alleged use of a pistol/revolver has been decreasing since 1996, the level in 1998 - at 123- remains high at 64 per cent above the number recorded in 1995. The number of offences involving the alleged use of a shotgun fell for the sixth consecutive year to 42 in 1998; the lowest number experienced in the ten year period 1989-1998.
3.4 Offences involving other types of firearms excluding airweapons decreased by 21 per cent, from 404 in 1997 to 319 in 1998. The proportion of offences involving other types of firearms excluding airweapons decreased by 2 percentage points from 34 per cent in 1997 to 32 per cent in 1998. Offences involving the use of an imitation firearm decreased from 85 in 1997 to 47 in 1998 (a drop of 45 per cent). The number of offences involving firearms in the ‘Other’ category (mainly unidentified firearms) reversed a three year trend and rose from 86 in 1997 to 100 in 1998, an increase of 16 per cent. This was the only category to experience an increase this year. The number of offences involving a rifle each year are small and volatile and there were only 7 such offences in 1998.
Crime/offence type by main firearm used (Table 4)
3.5 In the seven recorded homicides which involved the alleged use of a firearm in 1998, three shotguns, one pistol/revolver and three unidentified weapons were used. In 1998, shotguns were used in 8 robberies, 2 assaults and 5 attempted murders. In 1998, as in 1997, in nine out of ten offences of vandalism in which a firearm was alleged to have been used, the firearm used was an airweapon. An airweapon was also the main weapon used in 95 per cent of reckless conduct with firearms offences and 80 per cent of assaults. In contrast, the firearm most likely to be used in robberies was a pistol/revolver, being used in 45 per cent of robberies (61 offences).
Result of the use of a firearm (Tables 5 and 5A)
3.6 Of the 985 offences involving the use of a firearm in 1998, 66 per cent involved the actual discharge of the firearm — 3 per cent less than in 1997. The number of offences in which a firearm was fired and killed or caused injury to a person fell from 267 in 1997 to 248 in 1998, a decrease of 7 per cent. Property damage resulting from the discharge of a firearm accounted for 36 per cent of all offences (356) — the same percentage as in 1997. In three quarters of offences in which the firearm was not discharged, the firearm was used to threaten (245 offences in 1998 compared with 327 in 1997 - a decrease of 25 per cent).
Chart 2: Recorded crimes and offences involving a firearm : Result of use, 1998
Chart 2A: Recorded crimes and offences involving a firearm other than an airweapon : Result of use, 1998
Result of use of firearm by main firearm used (Table 6)
3.7 Of the 650 offences in which a firearm was actually fired, 570 (88 per cent) involved the alleged use of an airweapon. Of those offences involving an airweapon, 215 resulted in injury to a person and 322 resulted in damage to property. A shotgun was fired in 16 offences; resulting in personal injury in 8 cases (50 per cent). In 1998 there were 15 offences in which injuries were caused by the use of a pistol or revolver. In a further six offences, injury was caused by the use of a firearm that could not be identified.
Crime/offence type by use of firearm (Tables 7 and 7A)
3.8 In almost all of the robberies (127 out of 135) the firearm was used to threaten, reflecting the nature of this type of crime. In assaults involving a firearm, the firearm was fired and resulted in injury in two thirds of such cases and was used to threaten in a further 21 per cent. A firearm was fired and caused injury in 49 per cent of offences of reckless conduct with firearms.
Location of use (Tables 8 and 8A)
3.9 In 1998, 30 per cent of offences involving the alleged use of a firearm occurred in a dwelling. Two per cent occurred in banks, building societies or post offices. A further 33 per cent of offences occurred on public highways, a decrease of 2 percentage points when compared with 1997. More specifically, the number of offences involving the alleged use of a firearm in banks and building societies increased (to 12) for the first time in five years after decreasing from 100 in 1992 to 4 in 1997. A similar pattern is evident in offences committed in post offices after 1997 saw the lowest number recorded in this category in the past ten years. Although the percentage increases are large, the actual numbers involved are small and barely significant. The number of offences occurring in other locations (including open spaces, licensed and other premises) was 343 in 1998, 35 per cent of the total.
Chart 3: Recorded crimes and offences involving a firearm : Location of use, 1998
Firearms used to cause injury (Table 9)
3.10 In 1998, 248 offences were recorded in which a firearm was alleged to have been fired and resulted in injury to one or more victims. This was 19 less than the number recorded in 1997, a decrease of 7 per cent. In 1998, airweapons were involved in 87 per cent of firearm offences resulting in injury, a decrease of 1 percentage point when compared with the proportion in 1997. Of those offences which involved an ‘Other’ firearm, the number which resulted in injury decreased from 13 offences in 1997 to 9 in 1998. There was a small increase in the number of offences in which injury was caused by a shotgun (8 offences in 1998 compared with 5 in 1997).
Victim characteristics (Tables 10 and 10A)
3.11 The person most seriously injured in a firearm incident is referred to as the ‘main victim’. The majority of victims of offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been fired were young. In 1998, only 99 offences out of 248 were recorded in which the main victim was aged 21 years or over. The main victim in 29 per cent of offences involving firearms resulting in injury were female.
3.12 From 1989 to 1996 there was a steady increase in the number of main victims injured by a firearm other than an airweapon, increasing from 25 in 1989 to 86 in 1996. In 1997 the figure decreased to 32 before increasing marginally to 33 in 1998.
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