The short answer is yes. On the participant level, they produce material reductions in the likelihood of gun violence occurring in a home. At the community level, we know that they reduce the rates gun violence when implemented at sufficient scale. In Australia, for example, a large scale gun buyback effort reduced the rate of firearm homicide by 59% and firearm suicide by 74% in the years following.
To date, gun buybacks in the U.S. have occurred infrequently and on a relatively small scale. As a result, they have not demonstrated an impact on macro gun violence statistics. We believe that this is not an indictment of the model, rather, a reflection of their limited reach.
Our approach allows gun buybacks to achieve the necessary frequency and scale to deliver results. On top of that, we're collecting unprecedented data on gun buybacks to understand how to improve the way they are implemented and increase their impact.