Aug 03, 2018

Heritage Foundation;

School safety is an issue that policymakers have struggled to address for decades. Current federal policy provides an Unsafe School Choice Option that has been largely overlooked. States should ensure that implementation of the policy allows all students who are in unsafe environments to transfer to a safe and effective school. At the same time, state policymakers should immediately provide school choice options to children who are direct victims of school violence or bullying, and to those students in schools with a high rate of such victimization, through the introduction of "safe student" scholarships. 

May 22, 2018

Rockefeller Institute of Government; Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium;

The mass shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, happened nearly two decades ago, yet it remains etched in the national consciousness. Columbine spurred a national debate — from personal safety to the security of schools, workplaces, and other locations and to broader considerations of guns and mental illness. To this day, communities still are grappling to find solutions to the complex and multifaceted nature of mass shootings.

May 07, 2018

Scandinavian Journal of trauma, resucitation & emergency medicine;

Background: Gun violence is on the rise in some European countries, however, most of the literature on gunshot injuries pertains to military weaponry and is difficult to apply to civilians, due to dissimilarities in wound contamination and wounding potential of firearms and ammunition. Gunshot injuries in civilians have more focal injury patterns and should be considered distinct entities. Methods: A search of the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health MEDLINE database was performed using PubMed. Results: Craniocerebral gunshot injuries are often lethal, especially after suicide attempts. The treatment of nonspace consuming hematomas and the indications for invasive pressure measurement are controversial. Civilian gunshot injuries to the torso mostly intend to kill; however, for those patients who do not die at the scene and are hemodynamically stable, insertion of a chest tube is usually the only required procedure for the majority of penetrating chest injuries. In penetrating abdominal injuries there is a trend towards non-operative care, provided that the patient is hemodynamically stable. Spinal gunshots can also often be treated without operation. Gunshot injuries of the extremities are rarely life-threatening but can be associated with severe morbidity. With the exception of craniocerebral, bowel, articular, or severe soft tissue injury, the use of antibiotics is controversial and may depend on the surgeon's preference. Conclusion: The treatment strategy for patients with gunshot injuries to the torso mostly depends on the hemodynamic status of the patient. Whereas hemodynamically unstable patients require immediate operative measures like thoracotomy or laparotomy, hemodynamically stable patients might be treated with minor surgical procedures (e.g. chest tube) or even conservatively.

Apr 18, 2018

Heartland Institute;

The 10 principles provided here, with references for further research and documentation if desired, provide a framework for understanding and promoting sound policies regarding firearms in America.

Apr 05, 2018

Giffords Law Center;

This year, America's young people are demanding change and building a movement for gun safety reform. We have watched in awe as young students emerged from bullet-ridden classrooms in Parkland, Florida, and exclaimed Never again. We have witnessed their courage and eloquence as they stood up on national television to US Senators and NRA celebrities, demanding action, answers, and accountability. This generation—the future leaders of our country—understands that gun violence is not inevitable. And they know that the Second Amendment is not under threat. We are.Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence presents this report as a tool for this new generation of activists. It provides data about the scope of the gun violence problem facing America's youth and offers concrete recommendations for evidence-based policies that save lives. Our goal is to support the Parkland students and the thousands of young people they have inspired, as well as the lawmakers who hear their call for action and want to work together to make a change. Despite the brutal pain that follows each tragic shooting in our country, the courage of our nation's youth shines a brighter light on our future.

Apr 04, 2018

American Public Health Association;

To enhance America's public health response to gun violence, we need:*Better Surveillance. In 2017, the National Violent Death Reporting System collected data from 40 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Information on firearm fatalities from all 50 states and the District of Columbia would provide a more complete picture of gun violence in the United States.11In fiscal year 2018, Congress provided $23.5 million to expand the NVDRS to all 50states. We need to maintain this funding for nationwide implementation because the data collected would prove invaluable for the design of targeted gun violence prevention strategies.*More Research. Several laws have effectively restricted federally funded research related to gun violence, as well as access to complete crime gun data.12,13,14 Yet information is needed to fill critical research gaps. For example, there is almost no credible evidence that right-to-carry laws increase or decrease violent crime, almost no empirical evidence to support dozens of violence prevention programs for children, scant data on the effects of different gun safety technologies on violence and crime, and scant data on the link between firearms policy and suicidal behavior.15,16We must expand the collection of data and research related to gun violence and other violent crime deaths in order to better understand the causes and develop appropriate solutions. Congress should provide unrestricted funding to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for research into the causes of gun violence.*Common-Sense Gun Policies. APHA supports requiring criminal background checks for all firearms purchases, including those sold at gun shows and on the Internet. Currently unlicensed private firearms sellers are exempt from conducting criminal background checks on buyers at gun shows or over the Internet, giving felons, the mentally ill and others prohibited from owning firearms access to weapons. We also support reinstating the federal ban on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines, which expired in 2004.*Expanded Access to Mental Health Services. Funding for mental health services has been declining, and funding for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration continues to be threatened by budget cuts including cuts due to sequestration. We must ensure that state, local and community-based behavioral health systems have the resources they need to provide much-needed care.