Can California Help America Reduce Gun Violence?

The United States has more firearms (390 million) than people (325 million), routinely experiences mass shootings, and suffers rates of gun violence far higher than other wealthy countries. California has touted itself as a safer model, with the most gun regulations in the country, the 44th lowest rate of gun violence among the 50 states, and a 9 percent decrease in gun deaths over the last decade, compared to an 18 percent increase nationwide. Has California—with its diverse mix of dense urban centers and rural communities—found strategies that could reduce gun violence around the country? How vulnerable are California’s laws and strategies to federal judges bent on rolling back gun controls, including the state’s longstanding ban on assault weapons? And what can California—which has seen gun ownership and deaths rise amidst the COVID-19 pandemic—do now and in the future to reduce gun injuries and deaths even further? California Assemblymember Phil Ting, UC Davis Medical Center emergency medicine physician and Violence Prevention Research Program director Dr. Garen J. Wintemute, and Hope and Heal Fund executive director Brian Malte visited Zócalo to examine the most effective ways to keep Californians and Americans safe from one of the leading causes of death in the nation. This Zócalo/California Wellness Foundation event was moderated by Guardian senior reporter Lois Beckett. Read more about our panelists here: https://zps.la/3cjL6OA For a full report on the live discussion, check out the Takeaway: https://zps.la/3y2ZvJG Visit https://www.zocalopublicsquare.org/ to read our articles and learn about upcoming events. Twitter: https://twitter.com/thepublicsquare Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepublicsquare/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zocalopublicsquare LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/z-calo-public-square