National Press Club to Host "NEWSMAKER" Media Briefing on Reducing Gun Violence in America with Daniel Webster, Director of Center for Gun Policy and Research, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

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Mar 05, 2013, 11:19 ET

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg Gun Research Director To Propose Evidence-Based Policies for Reducing Gun Violence At National Press Club Newsmaker on March 15

WASHINGTON, March 5, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The horrific shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School last December instantly put gun control back at the top of the public policy agenda. But policymakers searching for answers seemed to have few solid studies to guide them. In 1996, at the urging of the National Rifle Association, Congress passed a law that prohibited the Centers for Disease Control from spending money on research could "advocate or promote gun control." In 2010, Congress prohibited military officers, doctors and mental health professionals from discussing gun ownership with depressed members of the armed services.

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But other researchers have been examining this topic. One month after the events at Sandy Hook, a summit was held at John Hopkins University on reducing gun violence. The results of the summit were published in the book Reducing Gun Violence in America: Informing Policy with Evidence and Analysis.

The book's co-editor, Daniel Webster – a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where he directs the Center for Gun Policy and Research – will discuss researchers' findings and propose evidence-based policies for reducing gun violence.

This National Press Club Newsmakers news conference is scheduled for 10 a.m., Friday, March 15, 2013 in the club's Lisagor Room on the 13^th Floor of the National Press Building, 529 14^th St., NW, Washington, D.C.

SOURCE National Press Club