We see a lot of studies, and with all of the hype about gun thefts from vehicles, we're seeing studies looking at those. However, many of them are falling short.
This latest study is a prime example.
On the surface, it's just a survey. It's not something that really delves deeper than that. They ask a bunch of questions, count the numbers, look for correlations between certain answers, and call it good.
It's probably one of the least difficult kinds of studies to do.
And yet, the problem here isn't what they did, but what they failed to do.
Abstract
This study examines the prevalence, characteristics, and behavioral responses associated with firearm thefts from vehicles in the United States. Data are from a national survey of firearm owners conducted by YouGov in February–March 2026 (n = 1,976). Overall, 2.7% of respondents reported having experienced a firearm theft from a vehicle. Multivariable Firth logistic regression analyses indicated that older age was associated with lower odds of experiencing a theft, while non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic respondents had significantly higher odds compared to non-Hispanic White respondents. Among those reporting a theft (n = 53), most incidents involved a single event and primarily included handguns. Thefts most commonly occurred from pickup trucks, sedans, and sport utility vehicles, often in residential settings such as driveways or nearby streets, and frequently during late-night hours. Methods of entry included forced access, breaking windows, or exploiting unlocked vehicles. Firearms were typically stored in accessible locations such as glove compartments, center consoles, or under seats. Respondents reported limited use of dedicated locking devices. Following a theft, 85% of respondents reported the incident to law enforcement and provided identifying information about the firearm (i.e., make/model; serial number); however, most stolen firearms were not recovered. Following the theft incident, most respondents reported behavioral modifications such as removing firearms from unattended vehicles (72.9%) or improving vehicle security with technology (29%). Replication is needed with larger samples and research on the efficacy of firearm theft prevention from vehicles through education, secure in-vehicle storage, and related policies should be tested.
Now, it's interesting that older respondents were less likely to be the victims of theft, but black and hispanic people were more likely. I'm not sure I'm comfortable enough with my suspicions to delve into why that might be, beyond the correlation between crime in lower-income neighborhoods and the prevalence of black and Hispanic majorities in those same neighborhoods.
Older people, on the flip side, tend to be better established and are less likely to live in a high-crime neighborhood.
And they make it clear that this is largely a residential thing, right?
They do, and they shouldn't, even by their own data.
At the time of the theft, respondents most commonly reported being at a residential home (34.0%), attending school or work (13.2%), attending a sporting event, concert, or show (9.4%), at a bar or alcohol-serving establishment (7.5%), or engaging in physical or recreational activity at the time of the theft (7.5%). Fewer also reported eating at a restaurant or coffee shop (5.7%), or attending a religious service (5.7%). The most common theft locations were residential driveways or garages (24.5%), residential streets (20.8%), or small parking lots serving a single business (20.8%). Less common locations included large parking lots serving multiple businesses (9.4%) or a single venue (5.7%), a downtown or business district street (5.7%), a public parking garage or lot (5.7%), and apartment complexes (1.9%).
While 45 percent were residential, the rest were businesses, and that's important.
First, I'm going to flat-out say that you're an idiot if you're leaving a gun in the car all the time, including when you're at home. I get that you feel secure, but you shouldn't. Bring your gun in with you when you come into the house. Period.
But the big thing they failed to do here, at least in my view, is ask people why they left guns in the car.
We already know that a major reason they do is because of gun-free zones. We only know it because someone else asked the question, not because these guys did. Instead, they looked at proximity to a person's home, as if that means all that much. Yes, you're going to see more thefts close to home, because people are more likely to go places closer to their homes than across town if they can help it.
All in all, it's a pretty dumb survey, and I'm more than a little concerned about "related policies [that] should be tested."
But one thing included that should really be talked about more is the line, "Relatedly, because the sample of respondents reporting a firearm theft from a vehicle is small, the patterns reported are preliminary, and findings reflect the limitations of descriptive analyses rather than statistical inference."
Small samples may well have been the result of the fact that hysteria about them is overhyped.
See, we get told there's this massive problem, and the media cites figures that support their hysteria, often without context, then expect you to freak out and demand new laws. Right now, it's about punishing people who leave guns in the car. Then researchers look into it, and rather than call it a non-issue, they give a bunch of figures that ultimately add to the hysteria.
But they rarely look at the total numbers.
So-called ghost guns are the murder-death-kill scourge of the universe, but they're not tied to homicides nearly as often as some might think. The studies don't look at that, though.
This is the same kind of thing, unfortunately.
