Citation

Swanson JW, Easter MM, Alanis-Hirsch K, Belden CM, Norko MA, Robertson AG, Frisman LK, Lin HJ, Swartz MS, Parker GF. J. Am. Acad. Psychiatry Law 2019; 47(2): 188-197.

Affiliation

Dr. Swanson is Professor and Associate Director, Division of Social and Community Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina. Dr. Easter is Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine. Dr. Belden is Research Scholar, Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina. Dr. Norko is Professor of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut and Director of Forensic Services, Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Hartford. Dr. Robertson is Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine. Dr. Frisman is Research Professor and Dr. Lin is Associate Research Professor, University of Connecticut School of Social Work, Hartford. Dr. Swartz is Professor and Head, Division of Social and Community Psychiatry, Duke University School of Medicine. Dr. Parker is Professor of Clinical Psychiatry and Director of Forensic Psychiatry, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis. Some of the authors are involved in the editorial leadership of The Journal. The authors did not participate in any aspect of this article's review and acceptance, however, which were managed by an ad hoc editor who is not a member of the Editorial Board. Dr. Norko acknowledges the support of the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors. The research presented in this article was supported by The Fund for a Safer Future, The Elizabeth K. Dollard Trust, and The Brain and Behavior Foundation.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, Publisher American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law)

DOI

10.29158/JAAPL.003835-19

PMID

30988021

Abstract

This article examines the application and effectiveness of a 2006 Indiana law designed to prevent gun violence by authorizing police officers to separate firearms from persons who present imminent or future risk of injury to self or others, or display a propensity for violent or emotionally unstable conduct. A court hearing is held to determine ongoing risk in these cases; a judge decides whether to return the seized firearms or retain them for up to five years. The study examines the frequency of criminal arrest as well as suicide outcomes for 395 gun-removal actions in Indiana. Fourteen individuals (3.5%) died from suicide, seven (1.8%) using a firearm. The study population's annualized suicide rate was about 31 times higher than that of the general adult population in Indiana, demonstrating that the law is being applied to a population genuinely at high risk. By extrapolating information on the case fatality rate for different methods of suicide, we calculated that one life was saved for every 10 gun-removal actions, similar to results of a previous study in Connecticut. Perspectives from key stakeholders are also presented along with implications for gun policy reform and implementation.

© 2019 American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law.

Language: en