Poll: Crime Victims More Likely to Arm Themselves

Americans who have been the victims of crime are more likely to own a gun than those who have not been victims, a Galluppoll released Monday shows.

The polling company found that 33 percent of respondents who had been victims of crime over the past year owned a gun, while 28 percent of those who had not been victimized owned one. The findings represent a statistically significant difference, Gallup said.

The survey asked 11,165 adults about gun ownership and crime. It is part of the annual Gallup Poll Social Series.

Gallup said it could not definitively explain why crime victims are more likely to be armed with the data it collected, even if the answer seems apparent.

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