A new guide from Johns Hopkins University recommends 10 policy changes to reduce gun violence in Wisconsin, including three identified as potentially especially helpful for communities such as Milwaukee, where gun violence has been prevalent.
“The recommendations are intended to have statewide impact,” wrote Ethan Bartlett, assistant research and policy adviser at the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions and lead author of the guide, in an email to NNS.
“That being said, research suggests some recommendations may have a larger impact in certain areas than others, depending on factors such as community culture, demographics, rurality and differences in implementation.”
The Wisconsin guide is the seventh state-specific policy roadmap published by the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, following guides for Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Maryland and Maine.
Bartlett said researchers began by examining Wisconsin’s existing firearm laws to identify gaps.
“From there, we were guided by research evidence and identified evidence-based policies that would fill those gaps and ultimately work toward better outcomes for Wisconsin residents,” he said.
Bartlett said the guide is intended to help policymakers, local governments and organizations identify legislative changes that could reduce firearm deaths and injuries.
“We view gun violence as an epidemic-level public health emergency and saw an opportunity to create a product with the potential to be part of the solution,” he said.
Three recommendations he said may be especially significant for Milwaukee and other communities experiencing higher levels of interpersonal gun violence: establishing firearm purchaser licensing; licensing gun dealers; and providing sustainable funding for community violence intervention and prevention programs.
Current snapshot of Milwaukee gun violence
As of Oct. 8, Milwaukee had recorded 84 homicides and 325 nonfatal shootings, compared with 108 homicides and 425 nonfatal shootings during the same period in 2025, according to the Milwaukee Police Department’s crime dashboard. Both categories declined over 20% compared with the same period last year.
In 2025, the city recorded 142 homicides and 516 nonfatal shootings, compared with 132 homicides and 639 nonfatal shootings in 2024.
Bartlett emphasized that firearm homicides represent only one aspect of gun violence.
“Firearm suicides represent the largest portion of firearm fatalities, and there are more firearm injuries annually than firearm homicides and suicides combined in Wisconsin,” he said.
In July, NNS reported firearms were involved in the majority of suicides in Milwaukee County in 2025.
“All forms should be taken into consideration when discussing ways to mitigate gun violence,” Bartlett said.
Here is a breakdown of the three strategies Bartlett highlighted for communities like Milwaukee.
Firearm purchaser licensing
The first recommendation calls for a requirement that prospective firearm buyers obtain a license before purchasing a gun.
Wisconsin does not require firearm purchasers to obtain a license, according to the guide.
Johns Hopkins recommends requiring prospective purchasers to complete firearm safety training, including live-fire instruction, submitting fingerprints, a comprehensive background check and an in-person application process.
The guide states that purchaser licensing laws were associated with an 11% reduction in firearm homicides in 136 large urban counties between 1984 and 2015.
The requirements could strengthen background checks and help prevent firearms from reaching people legally prohibited from possessing them, according to the guide.
Milwaukee County Supervisor Justin Bielinski broadly supports the recommendations, but he raised concerns about purchaser licensing.
Bielinski said firearm purchaser licensing requirements could disproportionately affect lower-income residents and people of color, particularly those living in heavily policed communities.
Gun dealer licensing
Another recommendation is for Wisconsin to establish licensing requirements for firearm dealers – on top of existing federal requirements.
Wisconsin does not currently require a separate state firearm dealer license, according to the guide.
Johns Hopkins recommends statewide licensing that includes recordkeeping, security measures and inspections to strengthen oversight of firearm sales.
The guide cites research finding that strong state firearm dealer regulations, including licensing and inspections, were associated with a 64% reduction in firearm trafficking within states.
The report highlighted federal data showing authorities recovered and traced 8,841 firearms in Wisconsin in 2023, including 3,781 in Milwaukee.
Bridget Whitaker is executive director of Safe & Sound, a Milwaukee-based nonprofit focused on community safety and violence prevention. She said the firearm purchaser licensing and gun dealer licensing speak to the accountability and responsible access to firearms.
“I think there’s value in creating stronger safeguards to help prevent firearms from getting into the wrong hands,” Whitaker said. “This is so important when we consider how quickly a disagreement, an impulsive decision or an unresolved conflict can become a tragedy when a firearm is involved.”
Sustainable funding of community violence intervention
Whitaker said the recommendation that resonates most with her is for sustainable investment in community violence intervention and prevention.
Milwaukee already has several local efforts, including Safe & Sound, the 414LIFE violence interruption program, and other initiatives coordinated by the city’s Department of Community Wellness and Safety.
Johns Hopkins researchers recommend sustained funding for anti-violence programs and a formal establishment of Wisconsin’s Office of Violence Prevention in state law, which could provide more stable state support for local violence prevention efforts.
“Too often – especially this year – nonprofits are charged to produce long-term outcomes with short-term funding,” Whitaker said. “We are asking organizations to build trust and maintain consistent relationships in neighborhoods while providing funding that may only last a year. Trust doesn’t operate on a grant cycle.”
Governor Ever’s actions
Bielinski said state lawmakers would need to push for most of the guide’s recommendations.
“Most of the reforms in the Hopkins report have to be initiated at the state level,” he said.
NNS reached out to Gov. Tony Evers about the three recommendations. Britt Cudaback, communications director for Evers, pointed to the governor’s previous budget proposals and calls for special legislative sessions and federal funding investments for violence prevention.
Evers created the Wisconsin Office of Violence Prevention – by way of an executive order in January 2025. The office was initially supported by $10 million in federal funding, and Evers proposed making the office permanent through his 2025-27 budget.
However, the proposal was not included in the final budget.
In 2022, the Evers administration directed $8.4 million in federal funding to Milwaukee’s violence prevention efforts.
He also has called for universal background checks and an extreme risk protection order law, which would allow courts to temporarily restrict access to firearms for people who pose a serious risk of harming themselves or others.
Bielinski questioned whether Milwaukee County could expand its violence prevention programs from a financial perspective.
“Funding-related measures, like hiring more violence interruptors, credible messengers, etc., are highly unrealistic given current budgetary circumstances,” he said.
A spokesperson for the Wisconsin Department of Administration, which oversees the state’s Office of Violence Prevention, also emphasized the need for sustained funding.
“The greatest impact, from the (Office of Violence Prevention) perspective, is continued sustainable, reliable and flexible funding for violence prevention in Milwaukee and across the state,” they said.
Whitaker said the guide’s recommendations “reflect something those of us working in neighborhoods have understood for a long time: reducing violence requires a comprehensive approach.”
More recommendations
The other recommendations in the Johns Hopkins guide are:
- Strengthening firearm storage requirements
- Strengthening protections against domestic violence involving firearms
- Establishing an extreme risk protection order law
- Expanding restrictions on firearm purchases and possession
- Prohibiting large-capacity ammunition magazines
- Strengthening requirements for carrying firearms in public
- Requiring gun owners to report lost or stolen firearms
Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.
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