International Review of Law and Economics 63 (2020) 105914 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect International Review of Law and Economics Examining the impact of child access prevention laws on youth firearm suicides using the synthetic control method Mark Gius Department of Economics, Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CT 06518, United States a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Received 14 February 2020 Accepted 4 May 2020 Available online 17 May 2020 JEL classification: K14 K42 Keywords: Child access prevention laws Youth firearm suicides Synthetic control method a b s t r a c t The aim of the present study is to determine the relationship between Child Access Prevention (CAP) laws and state-level youth firearm suicide rates. This paper differs from prior research in several ways. First, this is one of the few studies to focus exclusively on youth firearm suicide rates. Second, this study uses one of the largest and most recent data sets of any study on this topic. Third, this study uses the synthetic control method, an empirical technique that has not been previously used to study this topic. Results are mixed. For nine states, introduction of CAP laws resulted in lower youth firearm suicide rates. In thirteen states, however, CAP laws had no significant effects on youth firearm suicide rates. Hence, CAP laws did not have statistically significant effects on youth firearm suicide rates for most of the states examined. Given these inconclusive results, more research is warranted in this area. © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction In 1981, the youth firearm suicide rate was 1.69 per 100,000 per- sons; in 2017, it was 1.27 per 100,000 persons, a decline of almost 25%. Although a variety of factors, including more prevalent use of gun locks and safes and better counseling services, may help explain some of the decline in firearm suicides among youths, it is possible that stricter gun control laws may also be partly responsible for this decrease in suicides. One of the more relevant gun control laws is the Child Access Prevention (CAP) law. CAP laws impose criminal liabilities on adults who allow children to have unsupervised access to firearms. One of the primary reasons for implementing CAP laws is to compel parents or guardians to supervise children’s access to firearms in order to reduce the likelihood of potentially dangerous situations that may arise when children have unsupervised access to guns. Although there is no federal CAP law, many states have enacted such laws. As of 2017, 27 states have enacted some type of CAP law. These laws, however, vary widely. Some impose a criminal liability when an adult does not secure a weapon. Others only prohibit an adult from providing a firearm to a child. Many of these laws also have varying definitions of what a minor is. In some states, adults must secure firearms from children who are at most 14 years of age; for others, the age at which supervision is required is as high E-mail address: Mark.gius@quinnipiac.edu as 18. Some states require secured access for all types of firearms; other states only require it for handguns. Finally, most states have exceptions for hunting, sport shooting, and other legitimate pur- poses. Table 1 lists those states that have CAP laws and the year when the law was enacted. There has been much prior research on the effects of gun con- trol laws on suicide rates (Hamilton et al., 2017; Gius, 2015, 2011; Webster et al., 2004; Conner and Zhong, 2003; Lott and Whitley, 2001; Marvell, 2001; Ludwig and Cook, 2000; Cummings et al., 1997; Leenaars and Lester, 1997; Carrington and Moyer, 1994; Lester, 1993; Kellerman et al., 1992; Yang and Lester, 1991; Lester, 1988; Sommers, 1984; Lester and Murrell, 1982, 1981). The results of these prior studies are mixed. Some find that stricter gun control laws reduce firearm-related suicide rates (Hamilton et al., 2017; Gius, 2015; Webster et al., 2004; Conner and Zhong, 2003; Marvell, 2001; Ludwig and Cook, 2000; Cummings et al., 1997; Leenaars and Lester, 1997; Carrington and Moyer, 1994; Lester, 1993; Kellerman et al., 1992; Yang and Lester, 1991; Lester, 1988; Sommers, 1984; Lester and Murrell, 1982, 1981). Other studies find either no signif- icant relationship or an ambiguous relationship between suicide rates and gun availability (Gius, 2011; Duggan, 2003; Lott and Whitley, 2001; Marvell, 2001). When prior studies did find rela- tionships between guns and suicides, the relationships tended to be weak and were typically overshadowed by the effects of socioe- conomic factors. In addition, some studies found that stricter gun control laws increased non-firearm related suicides. Finally, many prior studies looked at overall suicide rates, and not just youth sui- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irle.2020.105914 0144-8188/© 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.