NCJ Number
154763
Date Published
1995
Length
14 pages
Annotation
The Hawaii Firearms Control Coalition (HFCC) has developed a plan to reduce firearm availability and accessibility and the risk of injury and death by firearm violence.
Abstract
According to data from Hawaii's State Department of Health, 222 people were killed with firearms between 1989 and 1992. The number of homicides committed with a handgun increased from 18.2 percent of all homicides in 1988 to 28.6 percent in 1992. Created in response to escalating firearm violence, the HFCC is a broad- based community group with representation from public health, medicine, law enforcement, academic research, tourism, the legal profession, women's groups, religious organizations, child advocates, private citizens, and firearm violence victims. The HFCC has worked to implement gun control legislation and has identified seven goals in preventing firearm-related violence: (1) establish a firearm surveillance system to capture data on every firearm incident in Hawaii; (2) explore data linkage opportunities and use the firearm surveillance system to develop specific intervention projects; (3) enact comprehensive firearm control legislation; (4) develop, enact, and support legislative initiatives targeting other violence prevention efforts; (5) design and implement public awareness campaigns that inform the public about the impact of violence-related issues and prevention options; (6) support the design, implementation, and evaluation of school-based educational intervention projects; and (7) support the design, implementation, and evaluation of community- based violence prevention projects.