Details are still emerging about the nature of Tuesday’s shootings, but one thing is for certain: gun violence continues to rock communities across the state.
Hawaii has several important gun safety laws on the books to prevent gun violence in the state, including background checks on all gun sales, a strong extreme risk law, a secure storage law and a law that helps keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers.
Although Hawaii has some of the strongest gun laws in the country and one of the lowest rates of gun violence in the country, there is still work to be done at the state and local level to keep communities safe. One timely example: State and local officials can use federal COVID relief money through the American Rescue Plan to fund evidence-informed community violence intervention programs, which have successfully reduced violence by implementing data-informed, locally led strategies.
More on gun violence in Hawaii:
- In the last decade, gun deaths have increased 38 percent, compared to a 17 percent increase nationwide.
- Gun violence costs Hawaii $415.2 million each year, of which $20.9 million is paid by taxpayers.
- Nearly 65 percent of all gun deaths in the state are gun suicides.
Additional information on gun violence in Hawaii is available here, and Everytown’s Gun Law Navigator — which shows how Hawaii’s gun laws compare to those of other states — is available here.