After mass-casualty shootings, the national debate often focuses on preventing people with mental illness from buying guns. But at the forum hosted by this week, researchers said that might not be the smartest way to decrease gun violence in America鈥攐r in New Mexico.
Josh Horwitz is with the out of D.C. "When you consider someone like , who shot [Congresswoman] Gabby Giffords in Tucson, we can debate what type of mental illness he had or whether he had mental illness," he said. "That鈥檚 really beside the point. He was someone who was dangerous, mad at the world. That鈥檚 someone that shouldn鈥檛 have a firearm."
Medical professionals who deal with gun violence met up in New Mexico on Tuesday night. They were talking about making gun laws that are based on evidence about when firearms are most commonly used.
Horwitz said family members are usually the first to know when someone鈥檚 exhibiting dangerous behavior. "One of the things we think New Mexico would benefit greatly from is a ," he said. "It allows family members and law enforcement to temporarily remove a firearm when someone鈥檚 in a crisis."
The panel also recommended temporarily prohibiting people who鈥檝e been convicted of violent misdemeanors from owning firearms, and making sure all domestic violence restraining orders come with a gun restriction.
