firearms

University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel announced plans Thursday to launch two new interdisciplinary initiatives.

Schlissel said the goal of the firearm injury prevention research initiative is to develop new knowledge and data on firearm violence.

Schlissel said researchers will collaborate across fields like medicine, public health, social sciences, and engineering. 

"Our vision with this initiative is not to delve into Second Amendment politics," said Schlissel. "But rather we will address injuries and death as the public health crisis that this is."

In 2016, 20,360 children and teens died in the United States. And sixty-one percent of them died from preventable injuries, according to a new study by members of the University of Michigan Injury Prevention Center. 

A new website hosted by the University of Michigan brings together research from across the country on firearm safety among children.

The site is the product of a research consortium made up of scholars from U of M and 12 other academic institutions called Firearm Safety Among Children and Teens, or FACTS.

A man who was once hospitalized for depression cannot legally buy a gun in Michigan – at least not without a court fight. That’s the decision handed down recently by a federal appeals court.

Michigan resident Clifford Tyler was turned away by a gun dealer after a background check revealed his history of being hospitalized for depression. Tyler is 74, and his hospitalization was more than 30 years ago following a divorce. Tyler says he has not had any mental health issues since.

Five Democratic Michigan representatives are participating in a sit-in aimed at closing what they call the 'terror loophole.' They propose closing the loophole with what they call the #NoFlyNoBuy law. It would make it more difficult for those specifically on the FBI's no-fly list to buy guns.

A campaign to end New Year’s gunfire in Detroit is still going after eighteen years.

Organizers say it’s successfully put a damper on the unofficial tradition, with celebratory midnight gunfire waning in recent years—at least anecdotally.

Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon says that seems to be true in his Detroit neighborhood, but many Detroiters are still afraid to venture out for New Year’s.

“You still hear a lot of people say, ‘I will be inside when people start shooting around midnight,’” Napoleon said.

A Michigan House bill would give judges more discretion when it comes to sentencing first-time felons who carried a gun during their crime.

Right now, first-time offenders face a mandatory two-year sentence for a felony firearm charge, on top of any other charges they're facing.

The Michigan Supreme Court has decided not to hear an appeal of a case involving libraries and guns.

Lansing’s library system had banned openly carried firearms in its branches. But the Court of Appeals found that violated a state law preventing local units of government from banning weapons.

Today, the state Supreme Court decided to let the lower court decision stand.

This week, Lansing will conduct its second gun buyback program in six months.

Violent crime declined in Lansing in 2012, according to the FBI.   But still the capital city recorded a dozen homicides last year.

The gun buyback taking place Saturday is intended to take a few weapons off the streets that might otherwise be used in violent crimes.

People who turn in firearms will receive gift cards worth between $50 to $150, depending on what kind of weapon is surrendered.

The first bill passed this year by the Michigan Senate would change the state’s definition of a “federally-licensed firearms dealer”.

Supporters of the measure say it’s just a technical fix to make state law consistent with federal regulations.

The bill passed easily Thursday with bi-partisan support. But a handful of Democrats voted against it.

State Senator Rebekah Warren said it’s a way to exempt more gun dealers from state regulations.

A state court has struck down a Lansing library’s ban on people openly carrying guns in its branches.

The Capitol Area District Library instituted its policy banning patrons from openly carrying firearms in 2005.

A group called Michigan Open Carry challenged the ban, claiming the ban violated a state law which blocks local units of government from instituting rules that restrict gun owners.     And a majority of the Michigan Court of Appeals agreed.

From the conclusion of the opinion released by the Court of Appeals:

This week, the Michigan Court of Appeals will hear arguments in a case over whether a library can ban weapons.

The Capital Area District Library has a very simple policy:  “All weapons are banned from Library premises by the fullest extent permitted by law”