By Tanya Metaksa
Duke Center for Firearms Law
What’s new—Opening my email on Dec. 11, I spied an announcement from the Duke Center for Firearms Law about its new executive directo,. Hayley Lawrence. Then I read her bio. She worked at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s Washington, DC office and specialized in national security law, international trade, and anti-money laundering policy. Her pro bono practice focused on representing individuals in criminal justice matters and working with groups like Brady, Giffords, and Everytown to promote gun safety policies as amici before the federal courts of appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court. Hayley’s academic publications examine the intersection of gender studies and constitutional law, with a focus on the Second Amendment and voting rights law. And, by the way, she is a 2021 Duke Law School graduate. The bottom-line question is whether the publications of the Duke Center for Firearms Law tilt even more toward an anti-Second Amendment bias than they currently do? You can read the bio here.
Department of Education $1 Million Grant for History of the Second Amendment
Steven Gutowski of TheReload.com sponsored a podcast about the University of Wyoming’s Firearms Research Center (FRC) $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to build a national, non-mandatory educational program on the history of the Second Amendment, led by Executive Director Ashley Hlebinsky. This is a summary of the podcast that describes the program’s purpose and design.
The grant will support the development of a civics-focused 2A history course aligned with the nation’s 250th anniversary, designed for secondary school educators nationwide. Hlebinsky stresses that the goal is not to promote a pro- or anti-gun stance, but to provide teachers with structured access to primary sources and scholars holding differing views on the Second Amendment.
Planned materials and access
The FRC plans to develop a digital archive of historical documents related to the drafting and ratification of the Second Amendment, as well as subsequent state and federal gun laws. The project will also feature video lessons for teacher training or classroom use, webinars with Second Amendment scholars, and an in-person conference for educators.
Implementation and opt‑in nature
The resources will be available nationwide as optional teaching tools rather than as required curriculum materials. The podcast emphasizes that the grant process and the planned course materials are intended to be nonpartisan and focused on improving civics education, not on promoting advocacy.
Editorial comment by Tanya K Metaksa:
The first article in this Dec. 15, legislative update reports on the announcement of a new executive director for the Duke Center for Firearms Law. An attorney with a background in pro bono work on behalf of Brady, Giffords, and Everytown, Hayley Lawrence, is not what most would consider a nonpartisan person. Time will tell how that works out.
The other section of this update reports on a political recommendation by a Democrat Governor for more laws to reduce so-called “gun violence.” It demonstrates biased political advocacy at its best. Thus, with a 50-year history of advocating for Second Amendment rights, I have watched and continue to watch Second Amendment rights being trampled by those who would eliminate them. I hope that the University of Wyoming succeeds in promoting a nonpartisan, educational, non-advocacy curriculum on this vital issue. However, personally, I am extremely skeptical.
State Legislature
The following states are still in SESSION:
Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin
New Jersey: On Monday, Dec. 15, the New Jersey Assembly Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on several gun‑related bills, including S.1425, A.3789, and A.6211, during the current lame duck session. People who want to share their views are encouraged to contact members of the Assembly Judiciary Committee and urge them to oppose these measures.
The hearing will examine S.1425/A.3789, described in legislative summaries as expanding culpability requirements for firearms trafficking offenses and related regulatory violations, and A.6211, which would revise penalties for criminal trespass when a person is carrying a firearm. These bills are part of a broader package of gun-related legislation under consideration in New Jersey that aims, in part, to address illegal gun activity and public safety concerns.
While supporters characterize S.1425/A.3789 as a measure to strengthen enforcement against firearms trafficking and violations of firearms regulations, critics argue that the bill’s culpability standard—described as covering situations where a firearms dealer “reasonably should know” a purchaser is prohibited—could expose compliant dealers to criminal liability even when they have followed required state and federal background-check procedures.
A.6211 would revise New Jersey’s criminal trespass law by increasing penalties when a person commits trespass while carrying a firearm, regardless of whether they have a valid permit to carry. According to the proposed language, trespassing while armed would typically be classified as a fourth‑degree crime, which in New Jersey can result in up to 18 months of imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.
Michigan: Here comes Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s document, which she hopes will propel her into a Presidential candidacy. Gov. Whitmer’s Gun Violence Prevention Task Force Recommendations!
The report from Governor Whitmer’s Gun Violence Prevention Task Force is a roughly 50‑page document released in November 2025 that lays out 39 recommendations to reduce gun violence in Michigan, including both implementation steps for existing laws and proposals for new legislation.
What the Task Force Is
Gov. Whitmer created the Michigan Gun Violence Prevention Task Force by Executive Order 2024‑4 and placed it within the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services in an advisory capacity. Its charge is to identify root causes of gun violence, compile and report data, maximize existing resources, gather stakeholder input, and recommend policies and programs to save lives.
Core Themes of the Report
The report frames gun violence as a public‑health and whole‑of‑government problem, emphasizing suicide prevention, community violence, school safety, and intimate‑partner violence. It also stresses the need to fully implement Michigan’s recent gun laws—universal background checks, safe storage, and extreme‑risk protection orders—through coordinated, statewide infrastructure rather than leaving them to ad hoc local practices.
Key Policy Recommendations (Selected)
- Create a Firearm Safety Policy Implementation Team to coordinate the rollout of new laws and track state progress.
- Enact new “upstream” measures: raise the minimum age to purchase firearms to 21; require waiting periods for all firearm purchases; expand or strengthen background checks.
- Ban or restrict specific items: “assault weapons,” high‑capacity magazines, bump stocks and other conversion devices, and unserialized “ghost guns.”
- Tighten risk‑based tools: strengthen domestic‑violence firearm relinquishment procedures; reduce barriers to Extreme Risk Protection Orders and Personal Protection Orders; standardize clear relinquishment guidelines.
Programmatic and Community Measures
The task force urges expanded support for Community Violence Intervention programs, including housing, mental‑health, and economic supports, and suggests using the report as a template for local CVI planning. It calls for broader secure‑storage education, increased distribution of free locking devices, and enhanced school safety efforts such as statewide tip lines and standardized training for school resource officers.
How Supporters and Opponents Characterize It
Supportive advocacy organizations describe the report as an evidence‑based roadmap that moves Michigan into the ranks of more aggressive gun‑regulation states, highlighting provisions like dealer licensing, an assault‑weapons ban, and magazine‑capacity limits as “essential, not optional.” Second Amendment supporters characterize the same document as a prohibitionist wish list that goes beyond implementing existing law and instead seeks broad new restrictions on lawful gun ownership.
