Containing the good idea fairy: A deep dive into Navy firearms restriction policy

ABSTRACT

Statement of Problem: US Navy suicide is an ongoing concern, with more than half of suicide deaths each year related to firearms. Although decreasing firearms access by those who are at risk for suicide has been well-established as a tactic for reducing risk, implementation of firearms restrictions has a significant cultural and occupational impact among service members that may increase the stigma of seeking mental health care. During a recent Deep Dive review of all previous year suicide deaths, subject matter experts from across the US Navy identified significant variability in command utilization of firearms restriction. Methodology: Based on this finding, a review was conducted to identify best practice for firearms restriction related to suicide risk across the US military services and municipal police departments. Findings: Findings from this review suggested that the Department of the Navy may benefit from adopting consistent standards for disarming and rearming service members at risk for suicide, base decisions on objective suicide risk rather than routine stressors, decrease access primarily when service members are off duty, and engage with service members to decrease core drivers of suicide behavior through command channels. Implications: Implementing these recommendations may be a crucial step in balancing precautions to decrease suicide risk with the stigma of firearms restriction in military settings.

KEYWORDS:

• Suicide prevention
• firearms
• lethal means safety
• military

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Correction Statement

Author Note: The opinions or assertions contained herein are the private views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government.

As illustrated herein, note that any frontline commander or medical provider can contact the Psychological Health Center of Excellence to answer specific empirical questions about suicide risk or related military mental health topics at: [email protected]

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.