UCLA

Mass shootings are often defined in a way that excludes events that are domestic violence (DV) related and/or events that occur in the home. However, over 50% of mass shooting deaths occur in DV-related events. First, this dissertation determines the proportion of mass shooting fatalities that occurred in the home and in DV-related events and uses descriptive methods to stratify these fatalities by age and gender. Second, this dissertation uses comparative policy methods to identify six gaps in federal DV-related firearm policy and examine state-level criminal and civil code for all 50 US states and the District of Columbia. Third, this dissertation examines whether any state-level DV-related firearm policies requiring removal of firearms from perpetrators may be associated with reduced mortality from DV-related mass shooting events. The results of this dissertation show that mass shootings that occur in the home and/or are DV-related account for over 50% of mass shooting fatalities and that women and children are highly represented in these types of events. It also shows that DV-related state-level laws addressing gaps in federal policy have been passed in every Census region and across political environments. However, seven states have not closed any identified gaps in federal DV firearm policy and disparities were identified in the extent to which these laws require removal of firearms from perpetrators. Finally, results of this dissertation show that firearm laws that require removal of firearms from perpetrators show promise as potential areas for policy intervention to reduce fatality from DV-related mass shootings.