Ask The Trace

Can You Ban Yourself From Buying Guns?

Ask The Trace

Can You Ban Yourself From Buying Guns?

A reader wants to know if a person concerned about their own mental health can voluntarily flag themselves in the federal background check database.

Jennifer Mascia
How Many Guns Fall Out Of Circulation Each Year In the U.S.?

Ask The Trace

How Many Guns Fall Out Of Circulation Each Year In the U.S.?

A reader wants to know if loss, theft, and breakage have a significant effect on the country’s civilian gun stock.

Jennifer Mascia
Exactly How High Are Gun Violence Rates in the U.S., Compared to Other Countries?

Ask The Trace

Exactly How High Are Gun Violence Rates in the U.S., Compared to Other Countries?

A reader asks about the differences between firearm homicide and suicide rates in the United States and the rest of the world.

Champe Barton and Daniel Nass
What Do You Want to Know About Gun Violence in America? Ask The Trace.

Ask The Trace

What Do You Want to Know About Gun Violence in America? Ask The Trace.

Is there something that just doesn’t make sense to you when it comes to guns and gun violence in the United States? A statistic you’ve been searching for, but haven’t been able to locate? Information about why gun violence is…

Team Trace
Do Armed Guards Prevent School Shootings?

Ask The Trace

Do Armed Guards Prevent School Shootings?

A reader asks if increasing armed school security could reduce deaths from active shootings or deter the attacks in the first place. Experts say the data is not encouraging.

Alex Yablon
What’s the Relationship Between Mental Illness and Gun Violence?

Ask The Trace

What’s the Relationship Between Mental Illness and Gun Violence?

Political leaders often imply that gun violence is a mental health problem. But the research shows the reality is more nuanced.

Elizabeth Van Brocklin
How to Have a Productive Conversation About Guns with Someone Who Holds Different Views

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How to Have a Productive Conversation About Guns with Someone Who Holds Different Views

Step one: start by talking about anything else…

James Burnett
How Often Are Adults Prosecuted for Letting Children Get Ahold of Guns?

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How Often Are Adults Prosecuted for Letting Children Get Ahold of Guns?

A kid can’t shoot anyone without getting a firearm from an adult.

Alex Yablon
In Much of the Country, Cities Can’t Enact Their Own Gun Laws

Ask The Trace

In Much of the Country, Cities Can’t Enact Their Own Gun Laws

Here’s what you need to know about NRA-backed preemption laws, which limit local regulation of firearms.

Jennifer Mascia
Do Gun Laws Affect the Rate of Shooting Deaths?

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Do Gun Laws Affect the Rate of Shooting Deaths?

The answer’s complicated.

Miles Kohrman and Daniel Nass
Do Stronger Gun Laws Reduce Domestic Homicide?

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Do Stronger Gun Laws Reduce Domestic Homicide?

A reader asks whether strict gun laws reduce killings by intimate partners. Experts say yes, but some laws are more effective than others.

Alex Yablon
How Many Assault Weapons Do Americans Own?

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How Many Assault Weapons Do Americans Own?

A seemingly simple reader question about military-style rifles exposes disputed definitions and gaping holes in government record-keeping.

Alex Yablon
Gun Violence is Complicated. We Want to Help Answer Your Questions.

Ask The Trace

Gun Violence is Complicated. We Want to Help Answer Your Questions.

Last month, we introduced you to Ask The Trace, a special project driven by the curiosity of readers. We asked you to pose the questions that would top your list if you were assigning stories in our newsroom. The…

Team Trace
What Do You Want to Know About Gun Violence in America? Ask The Trace

Ask The Trace

What Do You Want to Know About Gun Violence in America? Ask The Trace

Is there something that just doesn’t make sense to you when it comes to guns and gun violence in America? A statistic you’ve been searching for, but haven’t been able to locate? Are you curious about the stories behind the…

Team Trace
Red Flag Laws: Which States Have Gun Violence Restraining Orders?

Ask The Trace

Red Flag Laws: Which States Have Gun Violence Restraining Orders?

Since the Parkland mass shooting, more than a dozen states have passed laws to remove guns from people who could be dangerous.

Chip Brownlee

Ask The Trace

Can You Ban Yourself From Buying Guns?

How Many Guns Fall Out Of Circulation Each Year In the U.S.?

Exactly How High Are Gun Violence Rates in the U.S., Compared to Other Countries?

What Do You Want to Know About Gun Violence in America? Ask The Trace.

Do Armed Guards Prevent School Shootings?

What’s the Relationship Between Mental Illness and Gun Violence?

How to Have a Productive Conversation About Guns with Someone Who Holds Different Views

How Often Are Adults Prosecuted for Letting Children Get Ahold of Guns?

In Much of the Country, Cities Can’t Enact Their Own Gun Laws

Do Gun Laws Affect the Rate of Shooting Deaths?

Do Stronger Gun Laws Reduce Domestic Homicide?

How Many Assault Weapons Do Americans Own?

Gun Violence is Complicated. We Want to Help Answer Your Questions.

What Do You Want to Know About Gun Violence in America? Ask The Trace

Red Flag Laws: Which States Have Gun Violence Restraining Orders?