What Actually Prevents Gun Violence in America

By Chris Grollnek, Active Shooter Expert · Active Shooter Prevention Project, LLC (ASPP™)

Short answer: Preventing gun violence is a timing problem before it is a legal one. Firearm law acts at a single moment, while an attack runs on a timeline that opens weeks or months earlier. The FBI found that active shooters displayed roughly four to five observable concerning behaviors before the day, seen most often by classmates, coworkers, teachers and family rather than by police. Laws sit downstream of that window, which is why an organization needs somebody named, trained and empowered to receive a concern and act on it.

The recent mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, has once again thrust the issue of gun violence into the national spotlight. As we continue to grapple with the aftermath of this devastating loss of life, it becomes increasingly evident that we must take decisive action to address this growing epidemic. While calls for gun control and improved mental health services are valid, we must acknowledge that these alone are not enough. The truth is, laws alone cannot stop evil, and evil will find a way. A tragic event like the one in Lewiston reminds us that we need a layered approach to prevent such incidents from happening in the first place and to protect lives when prevention fails.

Public Prevention Training

One central part of tackling gun violence is proactive public prevention training. We believe that “see something, say something” is a well-intentioned but ultimately insufficient strategy. Prevention training goes beyond raising awareness; it equips individuals with the knowledge and skills to identify warning signs and respond effectively. By building a culture of vigilance and providing communities with the tools to act on their concerns, we can prevent potential threats from escalating into acts of violence. Education is key to early intervention and minimizing risks.

Identifying Additional Indicators

In the aftermath of tragic events, we often discover additional indicators that, if reported, could have made the difference in preventing the incident. We must encourage open communication and establish channels for individuals to share their concerns without fear of repercussions. These indicators could range from behavioral changes to concerning statements made by individuals. Encouraging the public to be proactive in reporting such indicators is a critical step in preventing gun violence. While law enforcement agencies work to close gaps in intelligence and information-sharing to ensure effective management of threats, we also need to learn from these horrible incidents if we are to reach the goal of PREVENTION.

Advanced Technology Solutions

In the face of rising threats, we must use advanced technology solutions to protect lives. Gun detection systems, smart evacuation apps, and gunshot detection technology are among the tools available to enhance security and response capabilities. These innovations provide real-time alerts and aid law enforcement in rapidly responding to incidents. While we cannot eliminate every threat, these technologies improve our ability to minimize harm and save lives in critical situations.

The Reality of Gun Ownership

The United States has a vast number of firearms in circulation, and responsible gun owners vastly outnumber those who commit acts of violence. Stricter gun control measures alone cannot guarantee safety. Preventing gun violence in America requires a layered approach that includes public prevention training, reporting and addressing additional indicators, and using advanced technology solutions. While addressing the issues of gun control and mental health, we must also focus on what we can do right now to defeat would-be killers. The events in Lewiston remind us of the urgency of this matter, and it’s time to prioritize the safety and security of our communities. Together, we can work towards a safer future by combining advanced technology with education and proactive measures to prevent gun violence and protect lives.

Why is preventing gun violence a timing problem?

Every firearm law operates at a single moment: purchase, transfer, possession, carry. An attack does not happen at a moment. It runs on a timeline that opens weeks or months before the day and closes in the minutes after the first shot, and a statute touches two points on that line while leaving the long middle stretch alone. The middle is where the decision was still reversible.

Legislation is a floor, not a plan. It sets the conditions a society will accept, then waits to be tested. Prevention works the stretch nobody argues about in a legislature: what the people around a person actually do in the weeks when behavior is visible and the outcome is still open.

Which is why what a national standard actually means matters more here than which bill passed. A standard tells an organization what to do on a Tuesday morning. A law tells it what it may not do.

What did the FBI find in the weeks before an attack?

In its report on pre-attack behaviors of active shooters in the United States between 2000 and 2013, the FBI found that each attacker displayed roughly four to five observable concerning behaviors before the attack. Four or five, sustained across weeks and months, and visible to somebody.

The people who saw them were classmates, coworkers, teachers and family. Police were rarely first. Between 2000 and 2024 the FBI recorded 528 active shooter incidents in the United States, and the settings changed every time while the window before them stayed the same shape.

Who sees the warning signs first?

People without a badge, a title or a procedure. A supervisor who notices a change in someone steady. A teacher who reads the same paper twice. A cousin who stops sleeping well over something they cannot put a name to.

Seeing has never been the failure. Routing is. “See something, say something” tells a person to speak and then goes quiet on everything that follows, because it never says who receives the report, who assesses it, who decides, or what happens the day after the concern is filed. A behavioral threat assessment program answers those four questions in writing. Without one, the concern reaches a voicemail box and dies there.

Where does preventing gun violence actually start?

It starts with an owner. Somebody has to be named, trained and empowered to receive a concern and act on it, and that appointment costs an organization nothing but a decision.

Then the site: doors, sightlines, gathering points, the exposures that cost little to fix and rarely get fixed because nobody walked them. Then the people, because how to prevent active shooters begins with what a room already knows before any alarm sounds. Response comes after all of that, which is why prevention comes first.

That order is the P.R.O. Model™: Prevention, Response, Options. The U.S. Department of Justice selected it as “A” national standard for 2022–2025 and again for 2026–2030, and it is in use at some installations and commands across the Department of Defense afterward. Laws sit downstream of all of it. They arrive after the argument is finished, and the argument that decides an outcome happens in a hallway, a break room or a kitchen, in the weeks when somebody is still deciding. The work of an active shooter expert is making sure that hallway has somewhere to send what it saw.

Sources
Federal Bureau of Investigation. A Study of the Pre-Attack Behaviors of Active Shooters in the United States Between 2000 and 2013. 2018.
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Active shooter incident reports, 2000 through 2024.
U.S. Department of Justice, P.R.O. Model™ selection, 2022–2025 and 2026–2030.

Learn more about the new P.R.O. Model™ (Prevention. Response. Options) in use by the Department of Justice.