"Groundbreaking." ―Rachel Louise Snyder, bestselling author of No Visible Bruises An examination of the phenomenon of mass shootings in America and an urgent call to implement evidence-based strategies to stop these tragedies Winner of the 2022 Minnesota Book Award Using data from the writers’ groundbreaking research on mass shooters, including first-person accounts from the perpetrators themselves, The Violence Project charts new pathways to prevention and innovative ways to stop the social contagion of violence. Frustrated by reactionary policy conversations that never seemed to convert into meaningful action, special investigator and psychologist Jill Peterson and sociologist James Densley built The Violence Project, the first comprehensive database of mass shooters. Their goal was to establish the root causes of mass shootings and figure out how to stop them by examining hundreds of data points in the life histories of more than 170 mass shooters—from their childhood and adolescence to their mental health and motives. They’ve also interviewed the living perpetrators of mass shootings and people who knew them, shooting survivors, victims’ families, first responders, and leading experts to gain a comprehensive firsthand understanding of the real stories behind them, rather than the sensationalized media narratives that too often prevail. For the first time, instead of offering thoughts and prayers for the victims of these crimes, Peterson and Densley share their data-driven solutions for exactly what we must do, at the individual level, in our communities, and as a country, to put an end to these tragedies that have defined our modern era.

Becoming Shooters, is specifically written for new gun owners. It breaks down the most important aspect of gun ownership--gun safety--into the simplest, yet most complete guide to the subject currently in print, including a detailed and comprehensive approach to firearms safety with children in the home.The book also explains in layman's terms how the human brain learns, why this matters, and how to leverage this knowledge to your advantage as a new gun owner who is seeking knowledge. It explains the unique (and critical) factors related to gun training that make it unlike any other subject you have ever learned.Salomon also lays out a wealth of insight into the landscape of the industry that will benefit every new gun owner, or person newly interested in expanding his or her existing knowledge and skill. This includes considerations for training, the pros and cons of different training structures, what to look for (and avoid) in an instructor, things to consider when defining and prioritizing goals, a sample curriculum for developing self-defense skills, a discussion on tactics and more.

Ten years after the school massacre at Columbine High School in Colorado, school shootings are a new and alarming epidemic. While sociologists have attributed the trigger of violence to peer pressure, such as bullying and social isolation, prominent psychologist Peter Langman, argues here that psychological causes are responsible. Drawing on 20 years of clinical experience, Langman offers surprising reasons for why some teens become violent. Langman divides shooters into three categories, and he discusses the role of personality, trauma, and psychosis among school shooters. From examining the material evidence of notorious school shooters at Columbine and Virginia Tech to addressing the mental states of the violent youths he treats, Langman shows how to identify early signs of homicide-prone youth and what preventive measures educators, parents and communities can take to protect themselves from the tragedy.

Building Shooters is not just another book about firearms training; it applies the principles of cutting-edge brain science directly to the challenges facing today's law enforcement officers, police trainers, military and others who require clinical tactical skills in environments that demand expert level decision-making.

School shootings scare everyone, even those not immediately affected. They make national and international news. They make parents afraid to send their children off to school. But they also lead to generalizations about those who perpetrate them. Most assumptions about the perpetrators are wrong and many of the warning signs are missed until it’s too late. Here, Peter Langman takes a look at 48 national and international cases of school shootings in order to dispel the myths, explore the motives, and expose the realities of preventing school shootings from happening in the future, including identifying at risk individuals and helping them to seek help before it’s too late.

Stop the Killing offers insight into what each of us can do to end the active shooter crisis plaguing America. Written by the former head of the FBI’s active shooter program, Katherine Schweit, shares an insider look at what we’ve learned, and failed to learn, about protecting our businesses, houses of worship, and schools. The book demystifies the language around active shooters, mass killings, threat assessment teams, and more. Never gathered before into one place, readers gain access to evidence-based research and the most up-to-date information as they travel step-by-step through shooting prevention efforts and shooting aftermaths. Beginning with an understanding of how to spot potential shooters, readers learn the many ways to prevent shootings and the role threat assessment teams play. Threat assessment experts provide insight on what kind of information they need, and how they use it to intercept a person on a pathway to violence. The book guides readers through the process of assessing building security weaknesses and shows how to find vulnerabilities in people, programs, and policies. Packed with practical advice for training every age, from preschoolers, to elementary school children, to adults, the book also includes the author’s own teaching outline on how to train people to run, hide, fight. The book gathers together examples to help build individualized emergency operations plans and shows how to tap vast government resources to cover costs to your office and employees, districts and students, and survivors and victim’s families. Hear sober advice gathered from those who have survived and responded to shootings at Columbine High School, Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook Elementary School, the Aurora theater, Los Angeles International Airport, and more. Their common theme is that it can happen anywhere and has. All the more reason to accept that as each of us better understand what happens and how to prevent it, we can be the ones to stop the killing. The book also features a new preface exploring the 2021 school shooting tragedy in Michigan, especially the groundbreaking use of a domestic terrorism charge filed against the shooter and involuntary manslaughter charges filed against his parents.