State sales of handguns surged during pandemic

Californians bought about 920,000 handguns from March 2020 through April 2021, a 66% increase from the previous 14 months, according to estimates from thetrace.org, a nonprofit journalism organization.

Gun sales have trended up in California for several years but, in the past, surges have been driven by long gun sales, particularly after mass shootings or before the implementation of new gun control measures.

During the pandemic, however, handgun sales rose faster than long gun sales.

Eight of the 12 months with the most California handgun sales since 2000 occurred during the pandemic.

Compared with the prior 14 months, there were an additional 365,000 handguns sold during the pandemic lockdowns. There were an additional 183,000 long guns sold during pandemic lockdowns compared with the prior 14 months.

Most Americans who bought a gun during the pandemic said they did so as a protection against crime, according to a recent survey by researchers at Harvard and Northeastern University.

There was also considerable fear about the future at the start of lockdowns. The same survey found that about 24% of Americans who bought a gun during the pandemic were first-time gun buyers.

In California, as lockdowns have eased, so has the surge in handgun sales. About 48,500 handguns were sold in the state during April, down from 65,100 in April 2020. But sales are still up from prepandemic levels. In April 2019, Californians bought about 41,200 handguns.