The United States is notorious for its gun culture and thousands of gun-related deaths and injuries – so it should come as no surprise that one insurer is offering coverage should you decide to shoot someone.
According to U.S. Law Shield Legal Expense Insurance Corporation, based in Houston, Texas, the company will cover the costs of legal representation through its Firearms Legal Defense Program “in any legal proceeding (criminal or civil), for zero additional attorneys’ fees,” if you find yourself in the position of having to use your weapon in the state of Florida.
All for only $10.95 a month – with only a slight extra cost to include family members, and minors.
And there is a multi-state option in case you “have to” use your weapon in a state other than Florida.
An estimated 10,000 people die by gun violence in the U.S. each year, with the peak happening in 1993 with 17,075 firearms-related homicides. According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, which examines death certificates, the most recent numbers place gun homicides at 11,078 for 2010. (continued.)
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Canadians will probably not be lining up for such insurance, as statistics show the knife as the weapon of choice, accounting for an average of one-third of all homicides in the country (of which there were 554 in 2010). According to Statistics Canada, the cities with the highest number of firearm-related homicides were Edmonton, Halifax and Winnipeg, with Halifax leading the way with 1.72 per 100,000 population – as compared to Toronto or Vancouver, which had rates of 0.80.
But for those pulling the trigger in the United States, the insurance does provide peace of mind – as revealed by the testimonials from those who have purchased the Texas version of the product, which became available in 2009:
“Please accept this small token of appreciation for the great job you all did for my husband. I remember when he said we should sign up for the Law Shield and I thought we don’t need that. Well! Thank God I did. You never know when things will take a terrible turn. You ALL did a wonderful job.”
“You guys are awesome! Please continue the fight for our rights and privileges!”
The Congressional Research Service in 2009 estimated that there were 310 million firearms in the United States, not including weapons owned by the military. Of the 310 million, 114 million were handguns, 110 million were rifles and 86 million were shotguns – for a total population of 306 million.
