Hawai'i has the lowest rate of gun-related deaths in the nation, according to a study by the Violence Policy Center.

The study, based on just-released 2006 national data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, found that 9.7 percent of Hawai'i households owned a gun. The gun-related death rate was 2.58 per 100,000 Hawai'i residents.

The five states with the highest per-capita gun death rates were Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska, Mississippi and Nevada.

Each of these states had a per-capita gun death rate far exceeding the national per-capita gun death rate of 10.32 per 100,000 for 2006.

"We do have strict gun laws," Honolulu Prosecutor Peter Carlisle said. "And our police chiefs only give permits to carry to those who deserve to have them."

Each state has lax gun laws and higher gun ownership rates. By contrast, states with strong gun laws and low rates of gun ownership had far lower rates of firearm-related death.

Ranking last in the nation for gun deaths was Hawai'i, followed by Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York.

The study said there is a correlation between gun deaths and high rates of gun ownership, along with relatively weak gun-control laws. In Louisiana, the state with the highest rate of gun deaths, 45.6 percent of households own a gun and the death rate was 19.58 per 100,000 residents.

The policy center, a nationwide nonprofit educational foundation that researches violence in America, defined states with "weak" gun laws as those that add little or nothing to federal restrictions and have permissive concealed-carry laws that allow civilians to carry concealed handguns. The center examines the role of firearms in America, conducts research on firearms violence and explores new ways to decrease firearm-related death and injury.

States with "strong" gun laws were defined as those that add significant state regulation in addition to federal law, such as restricting access to particularly hazardous types of firearms (such as assault weapons); set minimum safety standards for firearms and/or require a permit to purchase a firearm; and have restrictive concealed carry laws.

However, Hawai'i gun enthusiasts believe that the reason for the state having the lowest rate of firearm deaths is because of gun owners' attention to safety.

"Our laws are unnecessarily strict," said Daniel Oshima, Kane'ohe Gun Shop store owner. "The problem comes down to personal responsibility and respect for firearms."