Thomas Abt
@thomasabt.bsky.social
Author, BLEEDING OUT. Founding Director, VRC. Associate Research Professor, UMD. Senior Fellow, CCJ. Opinions, my own.
Reposted by Thomas Abt
@jama.com convened 60 experts from diverse fields to design a forward-looking roadmap for significantly reducing firearm-related harm by 2040. Read more on evidence-informed strategies: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
The JAMA Summit Report on Reducing Firearm Violence and Harms
This Special Communication discusses the JAMA Summit on Firearm Violence and provides an innovations roadmap to lead to substantial reductions in firearm violence, injuries, and harm in the US by 2040...
jamanetwork.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:59 PM
@jama.com convened 60 experts from diverse fields to design a forward-looking roadmap for significantly reducing firearm-related harm by 2040. Read more on evidence-informed strategies: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Important new JAMA report on reducing firearm violence. Take a look. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
The JAMA Summit Report on Reducing Firearm Violence and Harms
This Special Communication discusses the JAMA Summit on Firearm Violence and provides an innovations roadmap to lead to substantial reductions in firearm violence, injuries, and harm in the US by 2040...
jamanetwork.com
November 4, 2025 at 9:29 PM
Important new JAMA report on reducing firearm violence. Take a look. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Read it and weep. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/o...
Opinion | All It Took for Trump to Dismantle the Justice Dept.
www.nytimes.com
November 1, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Read it and weep. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/o...
Trump will take credit, but DC's crime was falling fast before the surge. Hard to say if it even helped. And even if it did, it's not a sustainable strategy. www.thetrace.org/2025/10/dc-s...
What Have Trump’s Troops Done for Crime in D.C.?
The president has taken credit for reducing crime in the capital, but a new analysis by The Trace shows that a decline was already underway.
www.thetrace.org
October 31, 2025 at 5:46 PM
Trump will take credit, but DC's crime was falling fast before the surge. Hard to say if it even helped. And even if it did, it's not a sustainable strategy. www.thetrace.org/2025/10/dc-s...
Please read this @usatoday.com review of federal crackdowns in Chicago, Memphis, Los Angeles, Portland, and Washington DC. Happy to have contributed to this well-investigated piece. www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
What Trump's federal crackdown looks like in 5 US cities
Troops have been deployed in LA, Chicago, DC, Memphis and Portland, Oregon. Each city has been changed in different ways.
www.usatoday.com
October 26, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Please read this @usatoday.com review of federal crackdowns in Chicago, Memphis, Los Angeles, Portland, and Washington DC. Happy to have contributed to this well-investigated piece. www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
As @protectdemocracy.org has noted, the corruption on display this week was particularly breathtaking.
October 25, 2025 at 4:31 PM
As @protectdemocracy.org has noted, the corruption on display this week was particularly breathtaking.
If you're interested in CVI strategies, this is worth a read.
Community Violence Intervention (CVI) approaches vary in theory, activities & populations served. This grey lit review shows how CVI practitioners, funders & scholars define and apply strategies. Timely read for research, practice & policy: doi.org/10.1177/0046...
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
doi.org
October 25, 2025 at 1:41 PM
If you're interested in CVI strategies, this is worth a read.
Reposted by Thomas Abt
@thomasabt.bsky.social, Director of the Violence Reduction Center, moderated a panel with key stakeholders focused on strategies that have led to a significant reduction in gun violence in New Orleans and how to ensure their sustainability. Watch here: vimeo.com/1121566754?f...
Katrina 20 Discussion Panel: Past, Present, and Future of Public Safety
This is "Katrina 20 Discussion Panel: Past, Present, and Future of Public Safety" by Orleans Parish District Attorney on Vimeo, the home for high quality…
vimeo.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:38 PM
@thomasabt.bsky.social, Director of the Violence Reduction Center, moderated a panel with key stakeholders focused on strategies that have led to a significant reduction in gun violence in New Orleans and how to ensure their sustainability. Watch here: vimeo.com/1121566754?f...
"The largest decline in murder recorded so far was last year’s 14.9 percent drop. Before that it was a 9.3 percent drop in 2023... [and we can] feel reasonably confident in a third straight year of record murder decline this year."
New this week: It's not just murder that is falling at a historic clip. The US may see the largest one-year decline in nearly every category of major reported crime in 2025.
jasher.substack.com/p/reported-c...
jasher.substack.com/p/reported-c...
Reported Crime May Be Falling At A Historic Rate In The US
How does 2025 stack up compared to other years?
jasher.substack.com
October 20, 2025 at 2:47 PM
"The largest decline in murder recorded so far was last year’s 14.9 percent drop. Before that it was a 9.3 percent drop in 2023... [and we can] feel reasonably confident in a third straight year of record murder decline this year."
Freedom-loving Americans, which should be all Americans, should be deeply disturbed by this. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
How Trump Is Using the Justice Department to Target His Enemies
President Trump has long spoken of seeking vengeance against his political enemies. Here’s a list of whom he is targeting.
www.nytimes.com
October 8, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Freedom-loving Americans, which should be all Americans, should be deeply disturbed by this. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Reposted by Thomas Abt
In the St. Louis region, SaveLivesNow is using science to guide its crime strategy with promising initial signs. If it succeeds, people will need to know about it.
www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...
www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...
Messenger: Crime fighters in cities need data. What happens when Trump erases it?
A website operated by the Justice Department tracks crime reduction strategies — but it isn't being maintained.
www.stltoday.com
October 1, 2025 at 7:58 PM
In the St. Louis region, SaveLivesNow is using science to guide its crime strategy with promising initial signs. If it succeeds, people will need to know about it.
www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...
www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...
Agree with Jeff Asher, who just released a deep dive on DC data: hard to see how the federal crackdown helped control crime. Maybe it did, but impact was small and impossible to distinguish from pre-existing downward trend.
New this week: I took a preliminary look at DC's crime trends since the federal intervention. I don't see much change in overall violent crime, potentially a drop in shootings that's hard to tease out from the preexisting trend, and a drop in property crime. jasher.substack.com/p/re-evaluat...
Re-Evaluating Washington DC's Crime Trends
A preliminary look at crime trends in DC.
jasher.substack.com
October 6, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Agree with Jeff Asher, who just released a deep dive on DC data: hard to see how the federal crackdown helped control crime. Maybe it did, but impact was small and impossible to distinguish from pre-existing downward trend.
“This country has a foundational tradition of resistance to government overreach, especially in the form of military intrusion... This historical tradition boils down to a simple proposition: this is a nation of constitutional law, not martial law.” www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Judge temporarily blocks Trump from deploying troops in Portland
Oregon officials had challenged President Donald Trump’s move to send troops to the state’s largest city, calling it “patently unlawful.”
www.washingtonpost.com
October 5, 2025 at 1:26 PM
“This country has a foundational tradition of resistance to government overreach, especially in the form of military intrusion... This historical tradition boils down to a simple proposition: this is a nation of constitutional law, not martial law.” www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
None of these statements should be acceptable for a political leader to make in front of a military audience in a democratic society.
October 1, 2025 at 12:28 PM
None of these statements should be acceptable for a political leader to make in front of a military audience in a democratic society.
This is a big deal and a very welcome development. Kudos @jeffasher.bsky.social and Jacob Kaplan for noticing.
New this week: I wrote about the very big change that the FBI recently announced very quietly - NIBRS now allows agencies to report non-fatal shooting data for the first time.
jasher.substack.com/p/the-fbi-ca...
jasher.substack.com/p/the-fbi-ca...
The FBI Can Now Collect Non-Fatal Shooting Data
A big change, subtly announced.
jasher.substack.com
September 29, 2025 at 1:25 PM
This is a big deal and a very welcome development. Kudos @jeffasher.bsky.social and Jacob Kaplan for noticing.
Reposted by Thomas Abt
In this article, @tonymess.bsky.social connects evidence and crime-fighting, both in St. Louis and beyond. Pleased to have been a part of it and glad to see the @vrcinfo.bsky.social's work mentioned. www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...
Messenger: Crime fighters in cities need data. What happens when Trump erases it?
A website operated by the Justice Department tracks crime reduction strategies — but it isn't being maintained.
www.stltoday.com
September 25, 2025 at 1:13 PM
In this article, @tonymess.bsky.social connects evidence and crime-fighting, both in St. Louis and beyond. Pleased to have been a part of it and glad to see the @vrcinfo.bsky.social's work mentioned. www.stltoday.com/news/local/c...
Pleased to see the lessons from Bleeding Out are still getting out there. Focus. Balance. Fairness. iowacapitaldispatch.com/2025/09/19/d...
Don’t go backward on how we fight violent crime. We know what works • Iowa Capital Dispatch
"Fear, denial, and division lead us to cast blame and grasp for outdated solutions" to violent crime and abandon strategies that work.
iowacapitaldispatch.com
September 23, 2025 at 12:42 PM
Pleased to see the lessons from Bleeding Out are still getting out there. Focus. Balance. Fairness. iowacapitaldispatch.com/2025/09/19/d...
Reposted by Thomas Abt
Last week, VRC Director @thomasabt.bsky.social gave the keynote at Sacramento Police Department's Violent Crime Summit. Thank you to Dr. Nicole Clavo-Barclay and Sacramento Police Chief Kathy Lester for the opportunity to discuss the work of the VRC!
September 22, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Last week, VRC Director @thomasabt.bsky.social gave the keynote at Sacramento Police Department's Violent Crime Summit. Thank you to Dr. Nicole Clavo-Barclay and Sacramento Police Chief Kathy Lester for the opportunity to discuss the work of the VRC!
I somehow missed this important op-ed a couple of weeks ago from David Kennedy. Don't make the same mistake! www.nytimes.com/2025/09/10/o...
Opinion | What Both the Left and the Right Get Wrong About Violent Crime
www.nytimes.com
September 22, 2025 at 12:44 PM
I somehow missed this important op-ed a couple of weeks ago from David Kennedy. Don't make the same mistake! www.nytimes.com/2025/09/10/o...
If scientists are viewed simply as a tribe, other tribes will be inclined to reject their wisdom. Smart stuff from @ellaalshamahi.bsky.social.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | I’m an evolutionary biologist. I’m also a former creationist.
The moment I finally admitted that Darwin was right didn’t feel liberating. It felt like grief.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 22, 2025 at 12:33 PM
If scientists are viewed simply as a tribe, other tribes will be inclined to reject their wisdom. Smart stuff from @ellaalshamahi.bsky.social.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
As Peter and Barry point out, there are better ways to support localities in fighting crime than sending in the national guard. www.nationalreview.com/2025/09/a-be...
A Better Way to Fight Crime | National Review
National Guard deployments can only do so much.
www.nationalreview.com
September 22, 2025 at 12:32 PM
As Peter and Barry point out, there are better ways to support localities in fighting crime than sending in the national guard. www.nationalreview.com/2025/09/a-be...
The weaponization of law enforcement, if unchecked, only ends in one place: autocracy. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
Trump’s new demands on Justice Department raise alarm among prosecutors
The president is rapidly intensifying the pressure he’s putting on federal prosecutors, prompting some observers to questions whether their traditional independence can survive.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 22, 2025 at 12:07 PM
The weaponization of law enforcement, if unchecked, only ends in one place: autocracy. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
For better or worse, Trump is generating attention and energy around the issue of violent crime. The challenge policymakers face is to channel that energy into policies informed by rigorous evidence and respectful of civil rights and liberties. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Trump’s unpredictable Guard deployments send big-city mayors scrambling
Democratic mayors are laboring to stay prepared and unified as Trump weighs federal incursions that could upend their communities and political careers.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 14, 2025 at 1:29 PM
For better or worse, Trump is generating attention and energy around the issue of violent crime. The challenge policymakers face is to channel that energy into policies informed by rigorous evidence and respectful of civil rights and liberties. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Some good, hopeful news on a Sunday morning. I see these sentiments in my own students as well. www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...
Shocked by Charlie Kirk’s murder, these students yearn for civil discourse
The students of Utah Valley University witnessed the worst possible outcome of political violence. Some are determined to create a model of civil discourse.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 14, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Some good, hopeful news on a Sunday morning. I see these sentiments in my own students as well. www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...