Handgun Acquisition in California During the Pandemic: Patterns by Demographic and Prior Ownership

We describe patterns of licit handgun acquisitions before (January 2017–February 2020) and during (March 2020–September 2021) the COVID-19 pandemic using administrative records from California. Handgun acquisitions doubled soon after the pandemic began, returning to near pre-pandemic levels over 19 months. The increase in handgun acquisitions was largely attributable to first-time acquirers, raising overall handgun ownership by 19%. The largest percentage increases in first-time handgun acquisition occurred among women and racial and ethnic minorities—for example, first-time acquisitions among Black women increased 350 %. Yet, the overall demographic composition of California’s handgun owners changed little because White men continued to dominate handgun acquisition and ownership throughout the pandemic.