Point of Impact: How gun violence affects Memphis
Point of Impact is a series published by The Daily Memphian that investigates the effects of gun violence on Memphis. Here is the full 7-part series published in October 2024, ahead of Election Day.
Guns haunted two friends' childhoods. Now they navigate a world awash in them.
Gun violence shaped their lives as kids, and gun-related charges sent them to prison. Here’s where they land on gun restrictions. Read more from reporter Laura Testino.
Trauma center workers see increase in gun violence first-hand
City of Memphis ambulance at
Regional One Health on Thursday, October 2, 2024. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)
The ambulances wail down Jefferson Avenue by the hundreds. The gurneys bearing hundreds of bullet-riddled bodies — about 1,400 each of the past three years — follow. The shootings often lead the evening newscasts. Residents grow accustomed to the daily chaos. Then, it is forgotten. The next day’s violence fills the void. Read more from reporter Samuel Hardiman.
Here are the 3 gun laws on Memphis’ upcoming ballot
Here’s how to find the three gun referendums on the Nov. 5 ballot and then translate the wordy language in which they are written. Read more from reporter Bill Dries.
Tennessee’s guns in cars law puts onus on owners. Or does it?
The “guns in cars” law allows owners to store firearms in their cars if those weapons are properly secured. But, unlike other states, the law provides no penalties for not doing so. Read more from reporter Aarron Fleming.
A closer look at Tennessee’s pivotal gun laws
Restrictions on Tennessee gun owners have loosened in the past decade, and the state Legislature shows no signs of changing that trajectory. Read more from reporter Julia Baker.
How have Memphis' elected officials voted on state gun laws?
Tennessee State Rep. Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby, left, is an original sponsor of the guns in cars law. He is with U.S. Rep. David Kustoff during a campaign event in Collierville Town Square Oct. 28, 2020. (Patrick Lantrip/Daily Memphian file)
The Daily Memphian has compiled a review of the major pieces of gun-related legislation passed through the Tennessee Legislature since 2013. Read more from reporter Bill Dries, with data visuals from Kelsey Bowen.
With switches proliferating, officers are outgunned
Patrol officers usually carry semi-automatic handguns, which fire once for each pull of a trigger. But those weapons make them ill-equipped to encounter a person with a converted pistol. Read more from reporter Julia Baker.
Graphic by Nick Lingerfelt.