Several new gun restrictions went into effect this week, with supporters saying the legislation will increase public safety.
Attorney General Dana Nessel said in an interview that the laws would “definitively” save lives throughout the state.
“In the dozens of other states where these laws are on the books, we know that there’s a significant reduction in the number of firearm injuries and firearm deaths,” she said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control , over 1,500 firearm deaths occurred in Michigan in 2021. Throughout the country, over half of gun deaths in 2021 were suicides, according to Pew Research Center .
While the bills were pushed by legislators in the wake of the Feb. 13, 2023, shooting at Michigan State University that left three students dead, their enactment this week was a coincidence. But Nessel said the bills would still go towards honoring the memory of those lost.
“To commemorate the horrible anniversary of the MSU shooting, I can think of no better way to honor the victims of that event than to have these new gun safety laws put into effect,” she said.