Gun Violence Program 2010 Annual Report

Public policies to prevent gun violence entered a new era in 2010 when the Supreme Court held that state and local laws cannot infringe an individual’s right to own firearms. Joyce grantees are working to make sure that in this new constitutional climate, states and localities can still adopt and enforce reasonable laws to protect public health and safety. Their efforts are backed up by new research and a newly expanded partnership with law enforcement.

Defending Reasonable Gun Laws
The Supreme Court’s ruling in McDonald v. Chicago—along with the 2008 Heller case—changed the legal landscape by establishing that individuals have a constitutional right to own firearms that must be respected by federal, state, and local governments. The Supreme Court, however, left the door open for laws regulating firearms, so long as they do not prohibit the possession of handguns in the home for self-defense.

Predictably, the rulings opened a flood of litigation from progun advocates seeking broader interpretation of the Second Amendment right recognized by the Supreme Court in the Heller and McDonald cases. With Joyce support, the Legal Community Against Violence (LCAV) is helping states and localities understand what is constitutionally permissible as they defend and enforce laws protecting public safety. LCAV is tracking cases around the country, writing amicus briefs, disseminating information, and providing research and other assistance as needed.

It has also testified in support of strong gun laws (including the Chicago ordinance that replaced the one struck down by McDonald), and meanwhile tracks efforts by pro-gun forces to weaken existing laws.

As legal challenges to current laws work their way through the lower courts, the results are encouraging, says LCAV’s Robyn Thomas. Several cases have upheld gun regulations as reasonable public safety measures, rather than applying the kind of strict scrutiny that rules out virtually all regulation of speech under the First Amendment. “It’s important to get the right information and facts out there so the public, media, and courts understand the importance of strong gun regulation for community safety,” Thomas says.
 

Building the Knowledge Base
To inform gun policy, a solid base of data and research is critical. Several Joyce grantees contributed significant research in 2010. LCAV’s Gun Laws Matter tracks correlations between laws and gun deaths. Mayors Against Illegal Guns put the spotlight on weak gun laws and interstate trafficking in Trace the Guns. Through grants to the President and Fellows of Harvard College, Regents of the University of California, and Johns Hopkins University, researchers published studies examining such issues as gun trafficking, possession by high-risk individuals, and adolescent suicide.

To make such research readily accessible, the Harvard School of Public Health in 2010 launched the Firearms Research Digest. The online database summarizes social science, criminology, legal, medical, and public health studies on firearms published between 2002–2009. It provides an invaluable resource for policy makers, courts, media, and others seeking solid information about firearms and their impact on American society. The database will be updated to include earlier and more recent publications.

Law Enforcement Support
Also in 2010, the nation’s top law enforcement organizations launched a new National Law Enforcement Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence.

The leaders vow to address gun violence in an era of shrinking law enforcement budgets and rising levels of officer deaths. “It’s not every day that you get 10 diverse organizations united on anything,” said Chuck Wexler of the Police Executive Research Forum, one of 10 groups joining the effort. “The Partnership gives us a platform to advocate collectively for the support we need to reduce gun crimes.”

Read the 2010 Annual Report
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Download a PDF of the 2010 Gun Violence Program and Grants