By David Benjamin Joyce 

On October 25, 2023, Robert Card executed 18 civilians in mass shootings at Just-In-Time Recreation and Schemengees Bar and Grille Restaurant in Lewiston, Maine. Three months before the rampage, Card spent 14 days in a New York psychiatric hospital. His violent tendencies were known to family members, the Army Reserves, and law enforcement officials in Maine. Despite the warning signs, Card never faced a firearm prohibition. He maintained control of a high-powered Ruger SFAR rifle, which he turned on victims ranging in age from 14 to 76. The Lewiston tragedy brought renewed focus on Maine’s risk-based firearm removal statute. Phase One of this dissertation examines barriers and facilitators to use of Maine’s statute from the perspective of law enforcement officers, prosecutors, medical providers, and researchers in Maine. Phase Two of this dissertation reviews risk-based restriction statutes in three comparison states – Connecticut, Maryland, and Vermont – and examines implementation outcomes. Semi-structured interviews with stakeholders form the basis for the qualitative data in this study. The responses led to identification of key barriers and facilitators to effective implementation of risk-based firearm statutes. From these emerging themes, this dissertation offers eight recommendations to improve Maine’s risk-based firearm removal program. A plan for change is presented using an adaption of the Overseas Development Institute’s RAPID approach. The plan for change includes recommendations for legislative modification by the Maine legislature and implementation strategies to be employed by local stakeholder groups. Although no policy can eliminate the risk of gun violence, adoption of the recommendations in this dissertation will reduce the risk that the tragic events of October 25, 2023, repeat in the State of Maine.

Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina, 2024. 140p.