Thursday’s San Francisco panel follows introduction of Gun Violence Restraining Order in California Assembly
Washington, DC—A panel of national mental health, public health and gun violence prevention experts, organized by the Consortium for Risk-Based Firearm Policy, will convene in San Francisco on Thursday, July 10, to discuss new approaches to keeping guns out of the hands of potentially dangerous individuals. The approaches, including a gun violence restraining order, were detailed in a recently released report from the Consortium.
The panel comes in the aftermath of the May 23 Isla Vista shooting, and as the California General Assembly considers legislation that would implement a “Gun Violence Restraining Order.” Such a tool would prevent individuals from purchasing or possessing guns when they are at elevated risk of harming themselves or others. Late last month, Assembly Bill 1014 passed out of the California Senate Committee on Public Safety and is now pending in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
“We need to ensure that those with an elevated risk of violence don’t have access to firearms,” said Josh Horwitz, executive director of the Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, the convener of the Consortium. “The approach that this esteemed group of mental and public health experts offers takes the next step toward stopping gun violence in this country.”
The Gun Violence Restraining Order is a policy proposal that was recently identified by the Consortium as a promising new strategy to prevent gun violence. The Consortium, a group of mental health and public health experts issued reports late last year to state and federal policy makers making the case for strengthening gun purchase and possession laws to restrict potentially dangerous individuals from having guns.
The legislation proposed would enable those closest to a person who is at an elevated risk of harm to self or others to petition a court to temporarily remove firearms from that person. After a short period of time, the Gun Violence Restraining Order would be reassessed to determine if the individual still poses a serious risk of violence. A fact sheet detailing a GVRO is available here.
Thursday’s panel is open to media, and coverage is welcome. In addition to the press availability, interview opportunities will be available ahead of time and on the day of the event. RSVP is requested; please contact Samantha Friedman at Samantha@westendstrategy.com.
What:
From Virginia Teach to Isla Vista
New Approaches to Keeping Guns from Dangerous People
When:
Thursday, July 10, 2014, from 3:30-5 p.m. PST
Where:
San Francisco Public Library – Koret Auditorium
100 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA
Who:
Panelists to include:
- Josh Horwitz, JD, Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Executive Director
- Jeffrey Swanson, PhD, Duke University School of Medicine, Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
- Shannon Frattaroli, PhD, MPH, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Associate Professor, Department of Health Policy and Management
- Renee Binder, MD, University of California San Francisco, Professor, Department of Psychiatry
- Garen Wintemute, MD, MPH, University of California, Davis, Professor of Emergency Medicine
- Julie Leftwich, JD, Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, Legal Director
The panel is sponsored by the Consortium for Risk-Based Firearm Policy, the Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, the California chapters of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, Violence Prevention Coalition of Greater Los Angeles and Women Against Gun Violence.
***Please note that an earlier panel will be held in Los Angeles at the California Endowment, 1000 N. Alameda Street, on Tuesday, July 8, from 1-2:30 p.m. PST, also open to media.
The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence (Ed Fund) is the 501(c)(3) sister organization of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. The organization has engaged in a number of successful public education campaigns over the years aimed at reducing gun death and injury. The Ed Fund can be found on Twitter.
