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Week in Review

As we transition to a new year, it’s important to recognize the impressive wins we’ve had for gun safety, including unprecedented electoral victories, a public will for change that has never been higher, and continued legislative momentum in the states.

Thanks to the unyielding efforts of the gun violence prevention movement, legislators in 13 states rejected measures to allow guns on campus and legislators in 20 states defeated measures to allow people to carry loaded, concealed firearms in public without a permit.

We also know that an overwhelming majority of American voters–95 percent–surveyed by Quinnipiac at the end of 2017 want to see improvements in gun safety. Americans are eager for action to make our nation safer from an epidemic of gun violence. Now, more than ever, is the time to push for change, to keep up the fight for gun safety, and to keep our eyes focused on important upcoming elections in 2018.

  • The Orange County Register | Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act Puts Californians in Danger : “The U.S. House of Representatives gave the National Rifle Association exactly what they wanted for Christmas this year: a vote on their favorite bill to weaken our nation’s gun laws.” Read more from our Executive Director Peter Ambler.
  • The New York Times | A Good Way to Keep Guns From Predators : When judges and law enforcement officials follow through on sensible gun safety laws that have wide support, lives are saved. Wisconsin and Washington State provide a model.
  • The New England Journal of Medicine | The Quiet Room : “The reality is that over the years, we have found that there is no good way to tell a mother that her child has died [from a gun], especially when the unexpected death might have been avoidable.” Read more from two doctors in NEJM.
  • The New York Times | The Gun Lobby is Hindering Suicide Prevention : “While many choose to write off suicide victims as choosing their own fates, the reality is that many make impulsive choices that turned quickly irrevocable. Their deaths would be preventable with exactly the type of insight that the gun lobby is actively trying to suppress.” Read more from a former board member of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention on their misleading partnership with with the gun lobby.
  • Arizona | Memorial Construction to Mark Tucson Shooting Anniversary : The city of Tucson will mark the seven-year anniversary of the mass shooting targeting former U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords that left six people dead by beginning construction on a memorial. The January 8th Memorial Foundation will kick off construction in the downtown area Monday morning on January 8.
  • California | New Gun Safety Laws Take Effect in 2018 : Beginning January 1, criminals must give up their guns when convicted of a serious crime, gun dealers need to get a certificate of eligibility from the California Department of Justice to verify they passed a background check, and online ammunition purchases will be shipped to a licensed vendor for transactions, meaning they will no longer ship to a buyer’s home. The new laws are provisions of Proposition 63, which was passed by voters last year.
  • Colorado | At memorial for Douglas County sheriff’s Deputy Zackari Parrish, enormous grief for enormous loss : As Gracie Parrish spoke of her husband — holding the youngest of their two daughters in her arms — the church stilled. Parrish, 29, was killed Sunday morning after responding to a call in Highlands Ranch. Four other law enforcement officers and two residents of the apartment complex were wounded before the gunman was killed, and the shock of the tragedy was evident in the church.
  • Nebraska | Bill Would Ban Bump Stocks, Silencers in Nebraska : A rare gun safety measure in a conservative state where proposals usually try to expand Second Amendment rights was this week in the 2018 Nebraska Legislature. Bill 780 targets bump stocks, which gained notoriety last fall when they were used by a gunman to spray bullets into an outdoor concert crowd in Las Vegas. The gunfire killed 58 and wounded hundreds. The bill would also ban silencers in the state.
  • Texas | Lock Up Your Guns, Save a Loved One’s Life (Op-Ed) : “Though people never want to think a loved one would take her own life, it is much more likely that the gun at home will be used to attempt suicide than be used to kill an intruder.” Read more about how to prevent suicide through safe gun storage.
  • Utah | Gun violence affects us all; let’s make America safe again (Letter) : “I’m a 17-year-old high school student living in Utah, and the number of stomachs a cow possesses is more shocking to me than the shootings that occur within this country.” Read more from this important letter to the editor by Michael Delgado.
  • Virginia | Gov.-Elect Northam Says Medicaid, Gun Violence Among Top Priorities : Northam said more Virginians die from gunshot injuries than car crashes. “Universal background checks will be, I think, on the table for discussion. We also need to talk about weapons of war. Do we need weapons of war on our streets, in our society in Virginia?” Northam is confident a flood of Democratic newcomers to the House of Delegates will encourage bipartisan cooperation. “We’re in such a — have a unique opportunity with the makeup of the legislature this year to really bring people from both sides of the aisle and get some good things done and do what’s in the best interest of Virginia,” he said.

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