This is just under two and half hours. This meeting of the Senate Judiciary committee will come to order. A hearing on gun violence epidemic Public Health crisis is todays topic. Well hear from Public Health experts who have been on the front lines of gun violence epidemic. We understand the pain of a lump on his fellow member has been taken away too soon by the pull of a trigger was in the aftermath tearing through bone like it is tissue paper. In cities like chicago to a constant drumbeat of a gun gunviolence has turned Public Health professionals into battlefield experts. Chicago faces the same challenges as many other cities and towns. Many rural areas need higher rates of gun violence than the urban areas. Across the country gun violence is a Public Health epidemic more than 2022 firearm related deaths in the United States. That is 132 americans every day dying from gun violence. Than half theg firearm related vents or suicides four out of 10. Children and teenagers. Not auto accident not cancer, and guns. Im going to share a video that shows the devastation left in the wake of the gun violence provides a glimpse into heroic efforts to heal communities and prevent future violence. Im going to warn the audience the video is disturbing and may be upsetting to some if they wish to avert their eyes. Please play the video. The foundation, Community Organization and corporations have all stepped up to support initiatives that holistically address the root causes of this cycle of violence. I think reframe this is a Public Health crisis. Im as abuse specialist met in my field have turned to gun violence recognizing gun violence is like an infectiousti disease. It is contagious. Violence is passed on from person to person. Collecting data, identifying trends, establishing, sharing these practices this is how youi can bet and epidemic. It has worked in the past. We use the same Public Health approach to dramatically cut automobile fatalities. We still drive where we need to go but we have seatbelts and the speed limits that help us get there alive. Public Health Experts are already working to address gun violence in realtime. Last Year Congress passed bipartisan Safer Communities acts at braidwood to salute my colleagues unrecorded who is here with us today representing the minority. It took real courage. We disagree on a lot of issues to bed at a time when we needed to back to you did your best to me thank you for that. You included two or 50 million in funding for Community Violence intervention. Edit two and 50 million for states to provide comprehensive community mentaliv health services. Let me give one example of the successful innovative programs underway. In chicago i heard from doctors personally who are sick of treating gunshot victims on the operatingic table. They wanted to prevent the gruesome injuries from happening in the firstgr place. So in 2018 and brought the other ceos of the 10 largest hospitals serving chicago and understand doing in the neighborhood surrounding their hospitals. And how we can do more. We perform the Heal Initiative which is a national of how h hospitals can collaborate and reach outside theirt walls to prevent gun violence. These hospitals have increased local hiring by 84 in the last four years. They have open 24 schoolbased Health Clinics to serve 11000 students and traded nearly 4000 local students for career in healthcare. Most importantly these hospitals are not just stitching up physical injuries. They are addressing emotional scars. They are counseling and Case Management to preventou retaliation and promote successful recovery just 2 over 8000 participation patients at the university of chicago have returned to the hospital. Without these programs and this initiative, 45 of patients with a gunshot wound are likely to return within five years with another. That is a stunning statistic. 48 will return shot a second time. Similar steps are underway across the country to use the strategy which is Community Violence intervention. Trusted committee figures to engage with individuals at high perpetrating or being victims of violence. They worked to interrupt acts of violence before they happen and connect people with treatment and tools that decrease the risk of future violence. Its time for us to build on the bipartisan Safer Communities act and ongoing efforts are working red and blue states joined together surely we can find some Common Ground before the parties to create real change for the American People what comes the Public Health crisis of gun violence. An amount turned to senator cornyn. Think youha mr. Chairman. Just a few months ago democrat governor of mexico issued a quote Public Health emergency order to suspend the right to bear arms in albuquerque and other county. I think i pronounce it correctly. She was warned repeatedly by officials in her states that such a suspension violated the constitution. A group of our college syrians including senator tellis, graham, and cotton and i wrote to the department of justice to intervene and protect the Constitutional Rights of new mexicans to carry a firearm outside of their home. Her request was consistent with the Second Amendment and that jurisprudence and i suspect the court of last resort will find the same. But unfortunately that does not mark the end of the road for this latest attack on what is a constitutional right. That is something some of our colleagues consistently overlooked. But lawabiding citizen is not a threat to Public Safety. Indeed there is a story think its in the Washington Post today by philip a bump who points out 52 of american households have a firearm in that household. 52 . Washington and democrats haveer chosen to follow governor grishamss lead and are now usig Public Health as a guys to address their concerns. I wish they had the same concerns about the number one cause of death for americans between the age of 18 and 45 which is fentanyl poisoning. Fentanyl made from chemical precursors from china going to mexico made it to look like relatively innocuous pharmaceuticals which are then smuggled into the United States. And the young people end up consuming what they think is an innocuous drug. And die as a result of fentanyl poisoning. We do not have the look far to see examples of executive overreach that have relied on socalled Public Health emergencies during the covid19 pandemic to many politicians were quick to shut down houses of worship and Church Services while allowing other businesses and other organizations to operate. Here in washington d. C. Mayor Muriel Bowser refused to allow the Capitol Hill Baptist Church to hold outdoor Church Services because of a Public Health emergency. The judge in that case found the mayor had exceeded her authority and burden the free exercise of religion. Its important to note thehe application of the socalled Public Health precautions was not evenhanded. Many politicians deemed it unsafe for businesses to operate for churchgoers to attend Worship Services they seem to have no problem with impact blm riots as in black lives matter riots in the summer of 2020 that because of millions of dollars worth ofof damages. We have a trust issue in a constitutional issue will use the Public Health approach attempt to strip away court Constitutional Rights. Other problem with homicide and assault is effective criminal while enforcement that means effective police, prosecutors, courts ands, prisons. We note these tools actually work. We know they work because we have Historical Data in order to prove it. Law enforcement efforts were stepped up in the early and mid 1990s was all dramatic declines in criminal violence of alll kinds. One of the reasons for this is the concentration of gunun violence is among small numbers of the population it is not the general population it is a small percentage of the population where this phenomenon exists. In washington d. C. In 2021 a study found only 500 people were responsible for up to 70 of the gun violence in the districts. In boston a 28yearold study found half the citys homicides committed by 1 of the population. Involved with gangs it primarily. 2014 study showed a similar situation in chicago. But all of this means, if i believe, if you empower law enforce them to selectively investigate and prosecute repeat offenders, you can dramatically reduce the gun violence in a community where it is a problem by removing the worst criminal elements of the Community Everyone is safer. That is the original purpose of the project Safe Neighborhoods Program which passed out of the senate this year. That focuses onat investigating and prosecuting the most dangerous and violent criminals in our communities to ensure they do noty continue to harm other people. We have seen it has an overwhelming success rate at reducing Violent Crime. UlSuccessful Programs like projt safe neighborhoods require resources and political will. You cannot simply achieve Safer Communities defining police are violent offenders out on bail like unfortunately too many prosecutors have been willing to do in communities across our country. Today, Violent Crime is a ravaging many of ourd communits and the public is of course taking notes as they must. Here in the district of columbia carjackings rub dramaticallyy. I have to believe this has to do with the perception there will not be consequences with committing such crimes against innocent citizens. Including members of the United Stateses congress. A recent gallup poll shows 63 of americans describe the crime problem in the u. S. Is either extremely serious or very serious. That is the highest level since this particular poll began in 2000. 77 of americans believe more crime in the eye since a there s just a year ago. But we talk about the gun violence epidemic, it seems as though a substantial part of the debate is a current crime problem. Ue in the d fund the police movement. Of course we know the other side of the gun violence issue is Mental Health. This is especially important we have firearm related suicides like the chairman said about 60 of gun deaths in america are the result of a suicide. Someone taking their own life. And of course we know the bipartisan Safer Communities act which we did pass made the single largest investment in Communitybased Mental Health care in american history. A good start. In 2023 a survey from mental s Health America down 21 of American Adults have claimed symptoms of a Mental Illness. Thats 50 millions americans. 2015 study by the epidemiology strongly associated with decreased risk of suicide which counts for more than half of the government related deaths in this country. Suicide is a Mental Health problem. Were not going to fix by denying the constitutional right to keep and bear arms police among the general population. Companies like belgium, japan, south korea it would have a higher suicide rate than the United States but do not have a Second Amendments. Mental Health Problems are involved in Mass Shootings as you know. We look at the profile of the mass shooters and found many had serious underlying Mental Health problems. Mental Health Issues that were unaddressed and untreated. Many of our colleagues including senator tillis, graham, durbin, koons, Work Together as you heard to pass the bipartisan Safer Communities act. I think that bill has already saved lives. I get regular updates on the success of the law as it deals with the Mental Health and violence in our communities there other parts of the bill working asg well. Since allows enacted in june of 2022, new criminal penalties and firearm trafficking led to more than 100 new charges against dangerous Cartel Members enhance juvenile records check, alone has stopped 400 transactions of people who would ordinarily flunk a background check criminal history. But now because we have an enhanced check includes juvenile records 400 transactions have been stopped. While 98. 5 of the background check system is unaffected. This builds on a bill we call fix nicks criminal background check which signed into law in 2018. That law has led to the uploading of millions of new recordsds into the fbi criminal background check database. To prevent those who are legally prohibited from professing an irr firearm under existing law from obtaining one. All of this was done in the Bipartisan Safer Community act in a bipartisan i way without infringing the rights of lawabiding citizens. The point is we can find ways to come together to get things done using Public Health authorities as a blanket accused to strip away Constitutional Rights which is an epidemic divides us more than it unites us. Theyre not autonomously fired weapons. They involve human agencies. We focus on the humans we can have a very positive impact. So i hope we look at the entire picture. Focus on repetitive acts of violence for most small percentage of our communities focusing on Mental Health diagnosis and treatment. Finally ways we can address gun violence like we did the safer act all without of lawabiding citizens. You raise some very important issues. Like defense or not we have had hearings in this committee about the issue of narcotics and whats happened to america. President biden recently raised this issue with the leader of china i hope at least something positive raise the issues of freedom of religion talk about funding the police i believe funding the police is critical i never said otherwise. I hope some thee spending bills our republican friends will start voting for them that should be a bipartisanti effort. One thing you dont acknowledge and we disagree on is the fact the United States of america is unique among nations. Unique among nations there is no other country developed economy in this world where the number one cause of death among children and teenager is guns. We are a unique nation in many ways this is something which not take pride in. Our men and women who have given life to medicine. The product of these violent actions. And try to keep these poor people alive for another day. And yet we know doing nothing is 45 of them that of the gunshot wound what is wrong with this picture . Its a limited number of people engaged in it are going to turn her back 122 americans die every single day by gun wounds . That is a fact in our country and no other country. But it comes to Mental Illness other countries face Mental Illness every day as well but they do not turn to guns or wanton violence as an alternative is the way they do in the United States pray that its entirely unique to our country. Before we return to the witnesses only briefly left the chmechanics place where the witnesses and they will r have five minutes each to provide an Opening Statementvi and then he round of questions for each senator will have five minutes to ask. We welcome five witnesses i will introduce the majority witnesses the first witness doctor megan is the dean of yale school ofhe Public HealthBoard Certified emergency physician of violence prevention researcher. She has been a leading National Voice for dressing firearmea injuries as Public Health problem for wells, over 10 year. Thank you for rejoinders well by doctor franklins director of Violence Recovery Program at the university of chicago medicine. Which helps trauma patients and their families with crisis intervention an