From the Associated Press: A new study says the number of people killed by guns in Indiana in 2009 has surpassed those who died in traffic accidents. The study released this week by the Washington, D.C.-based Violence Policy Centersays Indiana is one of 10 states where there were more gun deaths than traffic deaths in 2009. The other states are Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Virginia and Washington. In Indiana, 735 gun deaths were reported in 2009, compared with 715 people who died in motor vehicle accidents. Nationally, there were more than 31-thousand firearm deaths and more than 36-thousand motor vehicle deaths in 2009. The report cites data from the Centers for Disease Control. The Violence Policy Center is a national educational and advocacy organization that says its goal is to stop gun death and injury.
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.