By Julia P. Schleimer , Rose M. C. Kagawa and Hannah S. Laqueur

Background: Firearms are the most lethal method of suicide and account for approximately half of all suicide deaths nationwide. We describe associations between firearm purchasing characteristics and firearm suicide. Methods: Data on all legal handgun transactions in California from 1996 to 2015 were obtained from the California Department of Justice Dealer’s Record of Sale database. Handgun purchasers were linked to mortality data to identify those who died between 1996 and 2015. To account for variation in timing and duration of observation time, analyses were stratified by birth cohort. The primary analysis focused on those aged 21–25 in 1996. A secondary analysis tested associations among those aged 50–54 in 1996. Using incidence density sampling, purchasers who died by firearm suicide (cases) were each gender-matched to 5 purchasers (controls) who remained at risk at the case’s time of death. We examined the characteristics of purchasers and transactions, focusing on the transaction closest in time to the case’s death. Data were analyzed with conditional logistic regression. Results: There were 390 firearm suicides among the younger cohort and 512 firearm suicides among the older cohort. Across both cohorts, older age at first purchase and the purchase of a revolver were associated with a greater risk of firearm suicide. For example, among the younger cohort, those who purchased a revolver versus a semiautomatic pistol had 1.78 times the risk of firearm suicide (95% CI 1.32, 2.40) in multivariable models. Other associations varied across cohorts, suggesting cohort or age effects in purchasing patterns. Conclusions: Findings add to the evidence on firearm suicide risk and may help inform prevention strategies and future research.

Injury Epidemiology  2021. 8(68)

By Sonja A. Swanson,  Matthew Miller, Yifan Zhang, Lea Prince, Erin E. Holsinger, Zachary Templeton and David M. Studdert

Background: Little is known about the voluntary divestment of firearms among US firearm owners. Here, we aim to estimate the proportion of handgun owners who divest their handguns in the years following their initial acquisition; examine the timing, duration, and dynamics of those divestments; and describe the characteristics of those who divest. Methods: We use data from the Longitudinal Study of Handgun Ownership and Transfer, a cohort of registered voters in California with detailed information on 626,756 adults who became handgun owners during the 12-year study period, 2004–2016. For the current study, persons were followed from the time of their initial handgun acquisition until divestment, loss to follow-up, death, or the end of the study period. We describe the cumulative proportion who divest overall and by personal and area-level characteristics. We also estimate the proportion who reacquired handguns among persons who divested. Results: Overall, 4.5% (95% CI 4.5–4.6) of handgun owners divested within 5 years of their first acquisition, with divestment relatively more common among women and among younger adults. Among those who divested, 36.6% (95% CI 35.8–37.5) reacquired a handgun within 5 years. 

Injury Epidemiology 9(2)   2022.

By Hannah S Laqueur, Christopher McCort, Colette Smirniotis; Sonia Robinson , Garen J Wintemute 3

Firearm-related interpersonal violence is a leading cause of death and injury in cities across the United States, and understanding the movement of firearms from on-the-books sales to criminal end-user is critical to the formulation of gun violence prevention policy. In this study, we assemble a unique dataset that combines records for over 380,000 crime guns recovered by law enforcement in California (2010–2021), and more than 126,000 guns reported stolen, linked to in-state legal handgun transactions (1996–2021), to describe local and statewide crime gun trends and investigate several potentially important sources of guns to criminals, including privately manufactured firearms (PMFs), theft, and “dirty” dealers. We document a dramatic increase over the decade in firearms recovered. shortly after purchase (7% were recovered within a year in 2010, up to 33% in 2021). This corresponds with a substantial rise in handgun purchasing over the decade, suggesting some fraction of newly and legally acquired firearms are likely diverted from the legal market for criminal use. We document the rapid growth of PMFs over the past 2-3 years and find theft plays some, though possibly diminishing, role as a crime gun source. Finally, we find evidence that some retailers contribute disproportionately to the supply of crime guns, though there appear to be fewer problematic dealers now than there were a decade ago. Overall, our study points to temporal shifts in the dynamics of criminal firearms commerce as well as significant city variation in the channels by which criminals acquire crime guns.

J Urban Health (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-023-00741-y

By United States. Bureau Of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, And Explosives

From the Introduction: "The National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking Assessment (NFCTA) is a comprehensive examination of commerce in firearms in the United States and the diversion of firearms to illegal markets. Produced by a team comprised of ATF [Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives] subject-matter experts, academics from a variety of disciplines specializing in research relating to firearms, and other law enforcement professionals, the NFCTA is designed to provide the public, researchers, and policymakers with analysis of data lawfully collected by ATF as part of its regulatory and law enforcement missions to inform the dialogue on firearm law and policy. To ensure comprehensive analysis, the NFCTA is being produced in several volumes. In May 2022, ATF published Volume I, 'Firearms in Commerce'. [...] ATF routinely generates bulletins for law enforcement and industry, and issues public safety advisories for all citizens. This Volume of the NFCTA, however, represents the first comprehensive report incorporating crime gun information from the full range of sources used by ATF in more than twenty years. Advancements in ballistic analytical technology and information processing during this period have enhanced ATF's capacity to support law enforcement efforts to identify, investigate, and prosecute those who use firearms to commit violent offenses and the traffickers who illegally divert those crime guns to criminals. Volume II describes in detail the sources of information that constitute CGI [Crime Gun Intelligence], and how CGI is leveraged to promote effective investigation of firearm-related violence. Finally, the information and analysis in NFCTA Volumes I and II set the foundation for the subject that will be addressed in Volume III, 'Firearms Trafficking.'"

Washington DC. United States. Bureau Of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, And Explosives. 2023. 9p.

By Cassandra K. Crifasi,  Alexander D. McCourt and Daniel W. Webster

There is a major flaw in federal firearm laws in the U.S. and in most states’ laws; prohibited purchasers can acquire firearms from unlicensed private sellers without subjecting themselves to background checks and record-keeping requirements. Violent criminals and traffickers exploit this weakness with fatal consequences. A logical and popular approach to fixing this flaw is to extend background check requirements and procedures used for transfers by licensed firearm dealers to transfers from private unlicensed sellers. Research shows that these so-called comprehensive background check (CBC) laws curtail the diversion of guns for criminal use, but have not resulted in significant reductions in firearm-related deaths. Fortunately, there is good evidence showing that when states augment CBC laws with mandatory licensing or permitting of handgun purchasers, lives are saved by lower rates of firearm-involved homicides6, and suicides. Why are comprehensive background checks more effective when augmented by handgun purchaser licensing? The most likely reasons center on the more direct interface between prospective purchasers and law enforcement and more robust systems for verifying the identity of applicants and their criminal records. In most states with handgun purchaser licensing, applicants must apply in person at a law enforcement agency and be fingerprinted. In some cases, applicants must also provide proof of completion of certified safety training. These procedures may deter individuals who might otherwise make impulsive decisions to acquire a gun to harm others or themselves, and in fact studies have found that the presence of licensing laws is associated with lower levels of gun homicides and suicides. Further, the licensing requirements may also deter straw purchases (when an eligible person buys a firearm for a prohibited person or for someone who does not want their name attached to the transfer).  

Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, 2019. 8p.