The objective of this book is to quantify the social costs of gun violence in order to help policy makers determine how many and which violence programmes to support. Drawing upon the most detailed and extensive economic study of the cost of gun violence, Cook and Ludwig provide detailed information about how the burden of gun violence is distributed in the US. Drawing upon this data, the book draws out the important implications for public policy. The burden of gun violence in America is valued at about $100 billion annually, and this heavy cost is distributed much more evenly over the population than the victimization statistics would suggest. Cook and Ludwig's examination of these costs lead them to propose a multifaceted policy agenda that includes both law enforcement and gun control measures.
Readership: Academics, students and practitioners in economics (health economics as well as law and economics). Policymakers, legislators and their staffs
Philip J. Cook, ITT/Terry Sanford Professor of Public Policy, Duke University, USA, and Jens Ludwig, Assistant Professor of Public Policy, Georgetown University, USA
