Major U.S. gun makers that market a weapon used in several mass shootings have made more than $1 billion in revenue from selling firearms to civilians over the past 10 years, according to a report released Wednesday.
Five manufacturers — Daniel Defense, Smith & Wesson, Sturm Ruger, Sig Sauer and Bushmaster Firearms — collectively sell thousands of military-style semiautomatic rifles to civilians each year, the House Oversight and Reform Committee found.
The marketing of AR-15s has come under scrutiny from lawmakers and gun safety advocates after several mass shootings involving the firearm, including the Uvalde shoots which left 19 children and 2 teachers dead. The shootings have renewed calls for regulations that would ban or restrict sales of AR-15s, with a recent complaint claiming firearms are marketed to teenagers and young adults “who are drawn to violence and military fantasies.”
Gun manufacturers appearing at a House Oversight Committee hearing on Wednesday defended their products, blaming “evil” people for the deaths in recent shootings involving firearms.
“I am deeply disturbed by these horrific acts by evil people,” said Marty Daniels, CEO of Defense Danielwhose firearm was used in the Uvalde shoots. He later added, “I think these murders are local problems that need to be solved locally.”
In a prepared statement, Daniels said he was concerned the hearing would focus on a “type of firearm that was used in less than 4 percent of homicides involving firearms in 2019.”
While gun manufacturers are profiting from the growing popularity of AR-15 firearms, gunshot victims and their families are facing the equivalent in hospital bills. A separate report released last week by the US Congress’ Joint Economic Committee found victims of gun violence and their families paying over a billion dollars a year in medical expenses.
Increase in arms sales
The report said its findings are based on data provided by five gun manufacturers whose weapons have been used in mass shootings. Georgia-based Daniel Defense tripled its revenue from AR-15-style rifles to more than $120 million last year from $40 million in 2019, the House committee found.
Ruger’s earnings from those guns did about the same, nearly tripling to $103 million in 2021 from $39 million two years earlier, the report noted. Smith & Wesson’s revenue from all long guns, including AR-15-style rifles, more than doubled to $253 million from $108 million in that same time, he said.
AR-15-style semi-automatic rifles and similar firearms are sold on credit by companies that do not track or monitor related deaths or injuries, but instead market the guns to young men as a way to display their masculinity, the panel said in summarizing its investigation into the sale and marketing of assault weapons.
“The business practices of these gun manufacturers are deeply disturbing, exploitative and reckless,” Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-New York, who chairs the committee, said in a statement. “These companies use aggressive marketing tactics to target young people, especially young men.”
Gun control advocates recently filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission calling for an investigation into Daniel Defense’s marketing practices, saying the company targets young people like shooter Uvalde through first-person shooter video games like “Call of Duty” and through ‘social media images with pop culture. elements that are attractive to teenagers and children.
—With a report by Aimee Picchi.
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