The idea behind extreme risk protection is that people who are an imminent risk to themselves or others can have their firearms removed with due process for the recovery of those firearms. There have not been many studies that estimate how many orders are needed to prevent one suicide.

This was an update to a previous study that found one suicide was prevented for every 10 extreme risk protection orders served in Connecticut between 1999 and 2013. But using data not available to prior researchers, we estimated that one suicide death was prevented for every 22 orders issued. This is still in the realm of a worthwhile intervention to continue, but it is also important to figure out how to better help at-risk people.

I would like states that don’t have extreme risk protection orders to pass laws allowing them, and for more researchers to study the effect of these orders on different populations. It would be good to understand how to identify people who could most benefit from this measure of last resort, without forgetting that a better way to reduce suicide at the population level is reaching people sooner, not at the point where you’re depending on these extreme orders.