Homicide and Gun Control: The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act and Homicide Rates (Criminal Justice: Recent Scholarship)

Monroe investigates the success of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act at reducing homicide. Using data from the 1989 1997 Uniform Crime Reports: Supplemental Homicide Reports, Monroe conducts differences-in-differences-in-differences (DDD) analyses. Monroe s results indicate that Brady had no effect on overall adult homicide rates and caused a statistically insignificant decline in adult handgun homicide rates. Contrary to an anticipated substitution effect wherein the use of long guns in homicide would increase as handguns became more difficult to acquire Brady s implementation is significantly related to a decrease in the use of rifles, shotguns and other non-handgun firearms to commit homicide.