Gun crime

OPINION: The Canadian Government looks set to bring in a range of bail reforms as part of a new “tough on crime” agenda, which is likely to see more offenders remanded while awaiting trial; Canadian safety and security professional Vernon White says that while the measured approach to targeting bail reform at specific types of offences is welcomed, a wider range of measures – such as tougher release conditions, in-prison programmes and early interventions – could provide greater benefits in the fight against violent crime.

OPINION: Five women are murdered in the US every day by a current, former or estranged intimate partner, with intimate partner violence also a leading cause of death of American children; Pennsylvania State University Assistant Professor Dr Kathryn Spearman argues that, with clear warning signs of the predictable and therefore preventable behavior that leads to domestic homicides, the recognition and response of courts, communities and law enforcement to such red flags needs to be better.

ANALYSIS: 3D-printed ‘ghost guns’ have become increasingly in demand by criminal groups, partly because of the belief that such weapons are untraceable; but new research by Dr Georgina Sauzier and PhD candidate Michale Vic Adamos of Western Australia’s Curtin University suggests that chemical analysis of the filaments used to print the guns could help forensic investigators and police to link a seized gun and seized filament, or guns seized from different cases.

INSIGHT: The Canadian Integrated Ballistics Identification Network (CIBIN) has become a valuable tool in firearms investigation, turning ballistic evidence into actionable intelligence capable of linking cases, suspects, and criminal networks; but to ensure that CIBIN increases the capability to combat gun crime, law enforcement must continue to prioritise data and intelligence collection and sharing, say Vernon White, former head of Ottawa Police, and Soham Thorat, a technical and strategic expert in firearms intelligence.

OPINION: With recent advice to New Zealand Associate Minister of Police Casey Costello that the country is “losing the fight” against organised crime, efforts to control the trade in illegal guns will be crucial in limiting gang activity; University of Waikato Professor of Law Alexander Gillespie argues that another buy-back of all guns that should be on the country’s register by the end of August 2028, and adopting the UN protocol on the illicit manufacturing and trafficking of firearms and ammunition, are steps the country needs to take.

ANALYSIS: Recent horrific events and the accompanying media headlines have led some to believe Australia is in the grip of a knife crime epidemic; in this final article in a series from The Conversation on weapons and violence in Australia, Bond University Associate Professor Terry Goldsworthy explores the statistics around violent crime and weapons offences across Australia, and how the public perception in some quarters of a significant rise in crime is not reflected by the data.

ANALYSIS: Recent horrific events and the accompanying media headlines have led some to believe Australia is in the grip of a knife crime epidemic; in this second article in a series from The Conversation on weapons and violence in Australia, Macquarie University lecturers Professor Alex Simpson and Dr Vince Hurley argue that the latest crime data suggests the use of weapons and violent crime in the country is decreasing, and that compared to many other others, Australia fares well on these issues.

ANALYSIS: In the first in a series of articles from The Conversation on weapons and violence in Australia, Griffith University Principal Research Fellow Dr Samara McPhedran looks behind claims by the media and politicians that the country is in the middle of a violent crime crisis to explore the statistics and the real picture when it comes to the use of weapons and violent crime rates in Australia.

INTERVIEW: With the continuing advances and availability of 3D printing technology, New Zealand Police National Intelligence Director Dan Wildy spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the importance of the multi-disciplinary approaches being taken by the service in tackling a growing firearms threat favoured by organised crime groups, and the value of international collaboration.

OPINION: 3D-printed firearms – known as ‘ghost guns’ – have been used in a wide range of criminal incidents by organised crime groups as well as political and religious extremists, with growing numbers of arrests in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia; Professor Nir Kshetri of the University of North Carolina-Greensboro believes that the use of ghost guns in violent and criminal activity will continue to increase, with governments and police facing significant challenges in regulating the firearms.

OPINION: Last month saw the jailing of Finlay Macdonald, who murdered his brother-in-law and attempted to kill three other people during a violent stabbing and shooting spree on the Isle of Skye and on the Scottish mainland; Michael Greville, a workplace violence reduction consultant who had a 30-year policing career, believes the case highlights the need for a review of Police Scotland’s armed response capabilities to ensure the safety of the public and officers, particularly in remote communities.

OPINION: The latest figures for gun crime in parts of Canada make for worrying reading, with shootings in Toronto increasing by 58% on last year, and the average age of those involved dropping to 20; Professor Ardavan Eizadirad of Wilfrid Laurier University argues that the best way to tackle the issue is through a data-driven public health approach that addresses the root causes of violence using evidence-based interventions.

ANALYSIS: Gun homicides in Philadelphia surged during the covid years, but so far in 2024 fatal shootings are down by almost 40%; Carla Lewandowski and John A. Shjarback, Associate Professors of Criminal Justice at Rowan University, argue that while there is no single explanation for the drop, new police crime fighting strategies and leadership, a return to post-covid ‘near normalcy’ for policing and criminal justice, and wider national crime trends have all played a part.

ANALYSIS: Many cities and towns across the US facing worrying levels of gun violence are turning to the ShotSpotter gunshot detection technology to help tackle the problem; however, research carried out by Northeastern University Professor Dr Eric Piza indicates that while the new tech can improve the response time to firearms incidents, it has no impact on enforcement levels, clear-up rates, or reducing victimisation.

FEATURE: The latest report from Statistics Canada shows that firearm-related violent crime in the country has reached a 14-year high, with shooting homicides reaching record levels, prompting calls for more resources to be put into frontline policing, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

INTERVIEW: After 41 years in policing – the past four as Commissioner of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force – Trevor Botting retired recently, although admits he may have not hung up his uniform altogether; he spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the challenges leading an island force in the West Indies, the need to nurture local recruits, and why the force’s firearms officers are among the bravest he has worked with.

OPINION: Stop-and-frisk is a controversial policy in US policing, but formed a key plank of Philadelphia Mayor-elect Cherelle Parker’s campaign manifesto in an effort to tackle gun violence; Arizona State University Professors Michael D White and Henry F Fradella believe stop-and-frisk can be used effectively and without contravening the constitution, if coupled with careful controls and a change in culture and accountability.

OPINION: As security has deteriorated in Nigeria, one of the country’s main challenges has become ‘banditry’, with an eight-fold increase in the number of armed robberies, kidnaps and murders between 2018 and 2022; Dr Oluwole Ojewale of the Institute for Security Studies in Senegal believes that a decentralised police force, working in partnership with community activists and the military where required, would be the most effective solution to the problem.

ANALYSIS: A long-term approach to using technology, data analysis and information sharing to deliver significant reductions in gun violence in New Jersey has been hailed as the “tipping point in a new era of law enforcement” and is already being adopted and adapted by police and authorities in others states across the US, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

LONG READ: Once regarded as among Europe’s safest and most peaceful countries, Sweden has faced a significant increase in shootings and violence over recent years, due in large part to the rapid expansion of gang conflict and organised crime; Policing Insight’s James Sweetland spoke to officers and academics working to tackle the problem, and explored how the country’s interpretation of the group violence intervention (GVI) approach pioneered in Boston is having a big impact on Scandinavian streets.

INTERVIEW: In the latest in a series of interviews with leading figures involved in the research and investigation of organised crime, Policing Insight’s Dr Chris Allen spoke to Valentin Pereda, Assistant Professor in the School of Criminology at the University of Montreal, about the need to tackle the flow of illegal firearms, the importance of conversations between academia and law enforcement, and the impact of organised crime in his home country of Mexico.

ANALYSIS: The Mass Casualty Commission into the April 2020 Nova Scotia shootings that left 22 people dead has made a range of recommendations around tighter gun control, particularly of the most powerful and potentially destructive weapons; Professor Blake Brown of St Mary’s University believes the non-partisan nature of the Commission will give its findings added weight – but if and how quickly they are implemented by the federal government remains to be seen.

OPINION: Recent high-profile sentencing hearings involving individuals responsible for the shooting murders of multiple victims in the US have brought the term ‘lone wolf’ back into the media focus; but Rutgers University Professor Alexander Hinton believes the term is misleading – with violent extremists almost always part of a pack – and its use could impede efforts to combat far-right extremist violence.

INTERVIEW: Last year Donna Adams became the first female Commissioner of Tasmania Police; but while she acknowledges that her pioneering role will be “nice to reflect on” at the end of her career, she believes her diverse experience and a commitment to leading from the front will be more important in delivering positive change for the force, as she explained to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.