In October, the Supreme Court heard arguments in Garland v. VanDerStok, the case concerning the Biden administration’s rule regulating homemade, untraceable “ghost guns.” The case features a plaintiff that courts across the country have become familiar with since its establishment in 2013: the Firearms Policy Coalition.
The FPC and the allied Second Amendment Foundation frequently appear in high-profile gun lawsuits, as plaintiffs in cases or in supporting roles. Frankly, it’s hard to find a case against a federal gun restriction that doesn’t involve the groups — including New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn. v. Bruen, the landmark 2022 Supreme Court case that upended gun laws across the country, in which the FPC and SAF filed amicus briefs.
The groups have been major players in a multimillion-dollar, anonymously funded legal campaign to dismantle gun laws through the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, a strategy akin to the Christian right’s attack on abortion rights. I detailed the operation and its cast of characters in a July feature co-published with Mother Jones. This latest version, updated for the magazine’s most recent print edition, includes details that have emerged since the first story was published.
— Will Van Sant, staff writer
From The Trace
The Secret Plan to Strike Down U.S. Gun Laws: And the cop-turned-pastor at the center of it all.
The Trace’s Gun Violence Data & Best Practices Guide: It’s difficult to find gun violence data, and the data that does exist is often incomplete and unreliable. In this guide, we share data sources trusted by our team.
What We Learned From Analyzing 10 Years of Shooting Data: A Trace series challenges what many people might think about gun violence in America. Here are the highlights.
What to Know Today
Gunmaker SIG Sauer recalled approximately 230,000 red-dot firearm sights because of noncompliance with federal safety regulations, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced. SIG Sauer has been embroiled in legal disputes over a separate safety controversy concerning alleged defects in its signature P320 pistol. [Newsweek/The Trace]
Last year in Tennessee, an 11-year-old and 13-year-old were arrested in separate incidents concerning the same school district, under a state law meant to severely punish threats of mass violence. Two families are now suing the school district, accusing officials of violating the students’ rights. The suits are among several against Tennessee school officials related to the “zero-tolerance” law, a measure educators worried could be applied to students who pose no serious threat. [ProPublica]
Use of Maine’s “yellow flag” law — a less accessible version of popular red flag laws — spiked in the final months of 2024, continuing an upward trend since the gun rampage in Lewiston in October 2023, the deadliest mass shooting in the state’s history. As the law is being increasingly invoked, gun reform advocates are pushing for a referendum on a red flag measure come fall, which they say would make it easier for families to have weapons removed from relatives who may pose a danger to themselves or others. [Portland Press Herald]
Minneapolis approved a federal consent decree to impose additional oversight of its Police Department and institute reforms to its use-of-force policies, among other changes, including a requirement that officers carry a “less-lethal” weapon along with their firearm. The agreement follows a Justice Department investigation, launched the year after police murdered George Floyd, that found patterns of discriminatory policing. [MinnPost/Sahan Journal]
Over the past 25 years, the Columbine High School massacre of 1999 has developed an online subculture of fandom. Experts say this fascination has inspired more school shootings and violent attacks. The most recent example: Researchers say the shooter who attacked Abundant Life Christian School in Wisconsin was a member of online communities that praise and romanticize the shooters, though police have not yet disclosed an official motive. [Wisconsin Public Radio]
Community violence intervention efforts have gained funding and momentum in recent years — as well as increased scrutiny. As The Trace has reported, evaluating the efficacy of these programs is difficult, yet they need research to justify continued investment. Sociologist Andrew V. Papachristos argues that the evidence problem lies, at least partially, with an overemphasis on narrow research methods. [Undark]
Court documents show that former National Rifle Association chief executive Wayne LaPierre will appeal the more than $4.3 million in damages he was ordered to pay the gun group last year as part of the civil verdict in a case that found him liable for improperly enriching himself and those close to him. LaPierre’s notice of appeal indicates that he also plans to fight another part of the judgment: his 10-year ban on rejoining NRA leadership. [Courthouse News]
Incarcerating young people leads to lower graduation rates, worse employment outcomes, and more recidivism. Yet Philadelphia imprisons kids about four times more than the national average, even as its juvenile detention facilities face allegations of abuse. One in four of these youth arrests involve a gun, and although many do not involve violent crimes or result in serious charges, they still result in a detention period of at least six to eight weeks. [The Philadelphia Inquirer]
This section was written by assistant engagement editor Victoria Clark, with contributions from senior editor Sunny Sone.
Data Point
30 times per month — the relative frequency with which police in Maine evoked the state’s “yellow flag” law through most of last year. In the final quarter of 2024, usage jumped to between 47 and 59 times per month. Before the October 2023 mass shooting in Lewiston, usage averaged in the single digits or lower. [Portland Press Herald]
Non Sequitur
Spotify’s plot against musicians. [Harper’s Magazine]