Top Story
Bernice King, Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter, commended Nashville students for walking out of schools Monday in protest of gun violence. She also called on students to “refuse to return to school until there is some significant legislation that bans assault weapons.” [The Hill]
From Our Team
Amid turbulent weather and security issues at school voting centers, Chicagoans went to the polls on April 4 and elected Brandon Johnson as their new mayor. The race between the Cook County commissioner and opponent Paul Vallas was closely contested — and the leadup to the election centered on the candidates’ opposing plans to address violent crime. What could Johnson’s win mean for public safety in America’s third-largest city? Read more →
In 2019, as its leadership was engulfed in a power struggle, the National Rifle Association filed a lawsuit against its longtime PR firm, Ackerman McQueen. What followed was a hostile, protracted legal battle, with each side seeking millions in damages. Just before the case could go before a Texas court last year, however, they reached a settlement. Both sides have been tight-lipped about the deal — but now, a new court filing by New York Attorney General Letitia James reveals the cost of the agreement: $12 million. Read more →
What to Know Today
Harvard University Police officers held four Black students at gunpoint in response to a hoax report that someone in their campus residential suite was armed, in an apparent “swatting” attack. [The Harvard Crimson]
The Justice Department reached a $144 million settlement with victims of the 2017 massacre at a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas. The agreement ends a yearslong legal battle in which the government claimed it was not at fault for failing to alert the FBI of the shooter’s domestic violence conviction. [The New York Times]
Roy McGrath, once chief of staff to a Maryland governor, was killed by gunfire in a confrontation with FBI agents in Tennessee, after he became the subject of a manhunt for skipping a court date. How did he go from quiet bureaucrat to fugitive? [CBS News/The Baltimore Banner]
The Supreme Court appears increasingly focused on doing away with the precedent set by Chevron v. NRDC, a 1984 decision that expanded the power of federal regulators. A reversal would have major consequences for the ATF. [Duke Center for Firearms Law]
In recent years, major CEOs have been vocal about, and made major business decisions around, the issue of American gun violence. But after the Nashville school shooting, have they run out of steam? [CNN]
The 1st Circuit is considering a suit from firearm retailers and gun rights advocates to overturn a Massachusetts law prohibiting the sale of handguns that do not meet certain safety requirements. A federal judge recently ruled that similar California regulations were unconstitutional. [Courthouse News]
Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg says his outlook as a prosecutor was shaped by having a gun pointed at him six times during his youth; when he entered office, he pledged that he wouldn’t pursue cases for low-level crimes. How does that inform his prosecution of Donald Trump? [The New Yorker]
Archive
A Protestant Push for Gun Reform, Deep in the Heart of Texas: The Reverend Deanna Hollas has been touted as the country’s first minister of gun violence prevention. “We’re called to care about everybody and every child,” she said. (July 27, 2019)
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