John, 

Today marks 40 years since John Lennon was shot and killed in front of his home. Since that tragic evening in 1980, over 1.4 million more innocent lives have been taken by gun violence.

An Extreme Risk Law could have saved John Lennon’s life — along with countless other lives that have been lost since. The shooter had shared his plans to kill Lennon with his wife, and had there been an Extreme Risk Law in place, she would have had the ability to obtain court orders blocking his access to firearms as he posed a danger to others.

Though 19 states have codified Extreme Risk Laws, there is far more work to be done to end gun violence and save lives. We cannot afford to lose a million more American lives in the next 40 years.

"I hope in 10 years we aren’t as callous, and we have less reason to mourn. And we're not as indifferent or as tolerant of the kind of senseless violence that we seem to be."  — Michael Epstein

In this special episode of “Red, Blue, and Brady,” my co-host Kelly and I are joined by Karl Rhoads, Hawaiian state senator; Kris Brown, president of Brady; Michael Epstein, Academy Award-nominated documentary producer and fellow podcaster; and Paul Friedman, founder and executive director of Safer Country.

I hope you will listen to our conversation about John Lennon’s life, death, and what gun violence prevention is like 40 years after his murder. After this dialogue, I am even more confident than ever that we are on the right track to finally ending gun violence and saving millions of lives with common-sense gun laws. 

I can't wait for you to listen in!

JJ Janflone
Podcast Host, Red, Blue, and Brady