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Since 1982, 74 Percent Of Mass Shooters Obtained Their Guns Legally

By Luis Melgar, Lisa Dunn

Published November 2, 2018 at 9:46 PM EDT

11022018-feature-img-mass-shooting-ownership-melgar-wamu — Since 1982, there have been 105 mass shootings in the U.S., most of them involved guns bought legally.

In the aftermath of a mass shooting, a recurring question arises: How did the shooter get the gun? In most cases, the perpetrator legally bought the firearms in question.Of the 105 mass shootings committed in the U.S. since 1982, 78 (or 74 percent) involved firearms obtained by legal means, as shown in this analysis of the mass shooting database created by news organization Mother Jones.