The Washington Post - 20.08.2019

TUESDAY, AUGUST 20 , 2019. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ RE A

Politics & the Nation

BY PETER JAMISON

State laws that allow the re-
moval of guns from people who
present a threat to themselves or
others may play a role in prevent-
ing mass shootings, according to
a new study, a finding that could
buttress support for “red flag”
legislation being debated in Con-
gress.
The study by a team at the
nonpartisan Violence Prevention
Research Program at the Univer-
sity of California at Davis identi-
fied more than 20 cases in which
California’s red-flag law was used
in an effort to prevent a mass
shooting.
None of the threatened shoot-
ings in those cases took place,
according to the study, which will
be published this week in the
Annals of Internal Medicine.
Researchers could not defini-
tively state that California’s red-
flag law was responsible, noting
that it was impossible to know
whether threats would have been
carried out.
But the cases “suggest that this
urgent, individualized interven-
tion can play a role in efforts to
prevent mass shootings, in health
care settings and elsewhere,” the
researchers said.
Jeffrey Swanson, a professor at
the Duke University School of
Medicine who studies gun vio-
lence, said the research was an
advance in the understanding of
the effect of red-flag laws.
“This amounts to pretty power-
ful anecdotal evidence,” Swanson

said. “Here are some real cases of

real people that made a real

threat, and they were identified

through the process of this gun

violence restraining order.”

Swanson echoed the authors’

cautions against drawing the con-

clusion that the orders had

stopped acts of violence, saying

more study of gun-removal laws

was needed in additional states.

“This is an area where we need

more research,” he said.

Red-flag laws have been passed

in 17 states and the District of

Columbia, according to the Gif-

fords Law Center to Prevent Gun

Violence.

The findings arrive amid a na-

tional debate on the most effec-

tive — and politically feasible —

measures to avert acts of large-

scale gun violence. Back-to-back

shootings earlier this month left

dozens dead in El Paso and Day-

ton, Ohio.

The shootings prompted an

outcry for action from Congress,

where lawmakers have for years

been unable to agree on the need

for tougher gun-control mea-

sures. Red-flag laws, which are

intended only for people deemed

dangerous and are not supposed

to affect most gun owners, have

gained traction as a possible bi-

partisan solution.

A Washington Post-ABC News

poll last year found that more

than 8 in 10 Americans supported

allowing police to take guns from

people if a judge determines they

are a danger to themselves or

others.

Sens. Lindsey O. Graham

(R-S.C.) and Richard Blumenthal

(D-Conn.) are seeking to advance

legislation that would create a

federal grant program that offers

funding for states to enact red-

flag programs. President Trump

has expressed support for the

laws, although it is unclear how

hard he would push for them.

Law enforcement officials and

academic researchers have found

that red-flag laws are primarily

used in cases of people threaten-

ing suicide, not murder. A study

published last year found that

gun-confiscation measures were

associated with a 13.7 percent

drop in the gun-suicide rate in

Connecticut and a 7.5 percent re-

duction in Indiana.

Less evidence exists concern-

ing the impact on potential homi-

cides, including mass shootings.

Garen Wintemute, director of the

Violence Prevention Research

Program and lead author of the

new study, said his team at first

undertook a broad assessment of

the impact of California’s law,

which took effect in 2016.

But in the spring, he said, he

decided to publish an early set of

findings after seeing that the law

had been invoked with surprising

frequency to try to avert mass

shootings. That choice was made

before the recent spate of mass

shootings refocused national at-

tention on red-flag laws, he said.

Of 159 cases for which U.C.-Da-

vis researchers have so far ob-

tained records, there were 21 in

which the subject was suspected

of posing a risk of a mass shooting

and a protective order was

sought. (In some of those cases,

the individual was attempting to

purchase a gun but had not yet

obtained it because of California’s

10-day waiting period.)

The law was invoked in a total

of 414 cases in California from

2016 through 2018, according to

the study.

Most of the subjects in those

cases were white men, with a

mean age of 35. They included a

33-year-old armed security serv-

ice worker who quit his job and

threatened to shoot a former co-

worker and a 21-year-old who

posted threatening statements on

Instagram about his former high

school.

Adelyn Allchin, senior director

of public health and policy at the

Coalition to Stop Gun Violence,

said the study lends credibility to

arguments for widespread adop-

tion of red-flag laws, even without

an ironclad finding that Califor-

nia’s legislation averted shoot-

ings.

“It’s really promising to see

these results come out,” Allchin

said. “I think there’s some good

evidence here that these laws are

preventing acts of mass violence.”

[email protected]

‘Red flag’ laws may help with preventing mass shootings

BY MISSY RYAN

The U.S. military has conduct-
ed a test launch of an intermedi-
ate-range cruise missile for the
first time since withdrawing from
a Cold War-era arms-control pact
with Russia earlier this month,
the Pentagon said Monday.
The conventional missile,
which was fired from a mobile

ground launcher and flew more

than 500 kilometers (310 miles)

before hitting its target, launched

off the coast of California on

Sunday afternoon, the Pentagon

said in a statement.

“Data collected and lessons

learned from this test will inform

the Department of Defense’s de-

velopment of future intermedi-

ate-range capabilities,” the state-

ment said.

The test follows the Trump

administration’s formal with-

drawal Aug. 2 from the Inter-

mediate-Range Nuclear Forces

Treaty (INF), a 1987 agreement

that banned Washington and

Moscow from testing, producing

or deploying missiles with ranges

from 500 to 5,500 kilometers (

to 3,400 miles). U.S. officials had

long alleged that Russia acted in

violation of the pact by deploying

prohibited weapons.

“This is a very clear sign that

the United States and Russia are

on the verge of a new missile

race,” said Daryl Kimball, execu-

tive director of the Arms Control

Association, which opposed with-

drawing from the treaty. He said

Russia would match deployment

of such weapons “missile for

missile” and noted that while the

weapon being tested was conven-

tional, it could be armed with

nuclear warheads.

Russia, which has denied vio-

lating the treaty, has suspended

its participation in the pact.

Kimball noted that the feasi-

bility of such plans is uncertain

because lawmakers in the House

have sought to ensure the Penta-

gon cannot spend money on

developing new intermediate-

range missiles.

It’s unclear whether Pentagon

funding for such missiles will be

granted after House-Senate con-

sultations this year.

Pentagon officials also see

withdrawal from the treaty as a

chance to respond to China’s

development of a significant in-

termediate-range missile arsenal.

The Pentagon is trying to reorient

toward competition with China

and, to a lesser extent, Russia

after two decades fighting insur-

gent conflicts.

[email protected]

U.S. tests 1st missile after ending pact with Russia

SARAH L. VOISIN/THE WASHINGTON POST

Diane Sellgren, 60, of Minneapolis, is comforted by Ashley Cech, 22, of New York at a gun-control rally

at the U.S. Capitol in September 2015. They have both been affected by gun violence.

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