Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order Thursday establishing the Michigan Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, aimed at reducing firearm-related violence by providing policy recommendations. The executive order comes after a gunman opened fire at a Rochester Hills splash park on June 15, leaving nine people injured including two children. The task force creation also follows the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on United States v. Rahimi last week, upholding a law banning domestic violence abusers from possessing firearms.
In a press release, Whitmer said creating the task force will supplement the other gun violence prevention initiatives her administration and state lawmakers have implemented.
“Let’s build on the work we did last year enacting commonsense gun violence prevention laws—background checks, safe storage, extreme risk protection orders, stronger penalties for domestic abusers, and greater investments in mental health and local law enforcement—to keep families safe,” Whitmer wrote.
The task force will be housed under the State of Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Members will include state officials such as the state’s chief medical executive, the directors of the Michigan State Police, the Department of Civil Rights, the Department of Military and Veteran Affairs and the state superintendent. In addition, Whitmer will appoint community members such as researchers, school administrators and gun violence and domestic violence victims to the task force.
The task force is Whitmer’s latest initiative to curb gun violence in Michigan. Last year, state lawmakers passed a measure mandating comprehensive background checks for all gun sales and set gun storage mandates as well as extreme risk protection, or “red flag” law, allowing people to petition for a firearm to be confiscated if the gun poses a threat to the owner or others.
In an interview with The Michigan Daily, Ryan Bates, executive director of End Gun Violence Michigan, said the task force will allow for strong collaboration across different levels of state government to implement solutions for gun violence.
“It’s something advocates have been calling for, and we’re glad that the administration is taking the ball and is flipping it forward,” Bates said. “This is important because just because laws are passed in Lansing, that doesn’t mean they’re going to be implemented properly. This task force is a way of coordinating all of the work across government and civil society to ensure that these new laws are going to live up to their full potential and save as many lives as possible.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported roughly 1,400 residents of Michigan died due to firearm-related violence in 2021. The state saw a 25% increase in the rate of gun deaths over the past decade, from 2013 to 2022, compared to a 36% rise nationally. Firearms were used in 81% of homicides in Michigan, where they also are the leading cause of death among children and teenagers.
Zoe Kennedy, public health and safety director at FORCE Detroit, told The Daily in an interview the task force will shift the state’s work around gun violence to allow different communities to be represented in governmental work.
“(The task force) will allow communities to be a part of the solution, to actually be partners and to lead solution-based initiatives,” Kennedy said. “It is going to have a major impact because they will be doing research and having conversations with individuals impacted by violence and communities impacted by violence.”
The executive order indicates that the task force will not only provide recommendations on prevention policies but also assess current laws, collect and analyze data, identify causes and collaborate with stakeholders to identify resources to best combat gun violence in the state.
In an interview with The Daily, LSA junior Amber Henson, vice president of Michigan College Democrats, said the task force will be important for students because of their ability to sit on the task force and help make recommendations.
“My first reaction was relief,” Henson said. “The purpose of the task force is to examine the roots of gun violence and then suggest preventative measures, and I think that it’s a reality big step to getting decreased gun violence in schools and public places.”
Henson also praised Whitmer for her swift creation of a task force as indicative of her proactive stance in state politics.
“Gun control in Michigan is a very complicated issue,” Henson said. “I think (Whitmer) has laid such a strong foundation; her fast action to immediately create a task force shows her action-based approach to Michigan politics, and I think that it’s a defining feature of what we have in Michigan government right now.”
Summer News Editor Shane Baum can be reached at smbaum@umich.edu.
The post Gov. Whitmer establishes gun violence prevention task force days after Rochester Hills shooting appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
Leave a Reply