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Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, the Chief Medical Executive for the State of Michigan, has delivered a list of demands for more gun controls in Michigan. Building upon her triumphs during the COVID pandemic, her Gun Violence Prevention Task Force (MGVTF) has delivered its final report.
Its ten major demands include a state ban on assault weapons & their normal capacity magazines, an end the use of concealed pistol licenses to bypass permits-to-purchase, and an increase in the minimum age to buy all firearms to 21. The full list of their demands can be read on pages 9 & 10 of the MGVTF final report.
The Michigan’s Gun Violence Prevention Task Force membership - a diverse cross section of Michigan's fecless Deep State - was:
- Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive for the State of Michigan, ex officio member and chair of the task force.
- Moses Bingham, of Flint, director of strategic initiatives at the Community Foundation of Greater Flint.
- Shawn Borowicz, of Saint Ignace, member of the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians Board of Directors.
- Dr. Daveda Colbert, of Farmington Hills, superintendent of Wayne Regional Educational Service Agency.
- Richard Fuller, of Mattawan, sheriff of Kalamazoo County.
- Danielle Hagaman-Clark, of Brighton, Criminal Bureau chief at the Michigan Department of Attorney General.
- Alia Harvey-Quinn, of Detroit, founder of Faithfully Organizing Resources for Community Empowerment (FORCE) Detroit.
- Marianne Huff, of Holland, president and CEO of Mental Health Association in Michigan.
- Michael McKissic, of Lansing, owner and project manager of McKissic Construction.
- Kym Worthy, of Detroit, Wayne County prosecutor.
- Dr. April Zeoli, of Ann Arbor, associate professor at the University of Michigan.
Other ex officio members of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force included:
- Aimee Alaniz, Michigan Department of Education.
- Nancy Becker Bennett, Grants and Community Services Division, Michigan State Police.
- Nina Bowser, Division of Chronic Disease and Injury Control within MDHHS.
- Katherine Commey, Behavioral and Physical Health and Aging Services Administration within MDHHS.
- Jennifer DeLaCruz, Office of Community Violence Intervention within the MDHHS
- Jonathan Garvey, Michigan Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.
- Gail Krieger, Division of Victim Services within the MDHHS.
- Emily Laidlaw, Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement and Potential.
- Anthony Lewis, Michigan Department of Civil Rights.
- Dr. Juli Liebler, Michigan State Police.
Dylan Morris, of Lake Orion, served as an advisor to the task force and Buzz Thomas, of Activate Detroit, served as a senior liaison and advisor to the task force and his role was supported by the Joyce Foundation.
You can rest assured that the absence of a single gun owner organization representative on the MGVTF was a mere oversight by our enlightened, Democratic Party masters:
Michigan gun task force: Ban assault weapons, raise minimum buying age
By Simon D. Schuster - November 24, 2025
- A task force assembled last year by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has released recommendations to combat gun violence
- Report calls for banning several types of guns and controversial attachments, as well as improving firearms safety practices
- State chief medical officer Natasha Bagdasarian said the report was data-driven and crafted through a public health lens
LANSING — Michigan’s Gun Violence Prevention Task Force is calling on the state to ban assault weapons, close a concealed pistol license “loophole” and increase the minimum age to buy guns to 21.
Those are just a few of the 39 recommendations included in Monday’s final report from the task force Gov. Gretchen Whitmer created last year by executive order, charging members to advise her and other state officials “on the root causes and possible solutions for gun violence in Michigan.”
Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, the state’s chief medical executive and the task force’s chair, said the report is not meant to be political, though many of their recommendations would require writing new laws or securing state funding.
“We are looking at firearm violence and firearm -elated deaths as a public health crisis,” Bagdasarian told Bridge Michigan, noting firearms are the top killer of US children.
The 11-member panel was “looking at this as an issue that isn’t going to be addressed by one single change or one single intervention, but something that is going to need incremental change in many areas,” she added.
Whitmer, a Democrat, hailed the report, but some of its more aggressive recommendations are sure to face opposition in the Republican-led state House, where Speaker Matt Hall in June publicly rejected the kind of ghost gun ban the task force is also recommending.
“We all want to keep Michiganders safe,” Whitmer said in a statement. “These recommendations will help us do exactly that.”
Suicide by firearms, which make up 57% of all firearm-related deaths in Michigan between 2018 and 2023, according to the panel, is placed front and center in the report.
The panel recommended a number of changes to reduce firearm-related suicides, including giving federal firearms licensees immunity from lawsuits if they store a firearm for someone in crisis who, after returning the gun, goes on to harm themselves. They also recommended expanding the availability of safe storage options and improving data collection around the deaths.
Task force members included Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy, Kalamazoo County Sheriff Richard Fuller, community and mental health advocates and University of Michigan professor April Zeoli, who studies firearm injury prevention.
The panel also recommended Michigan join ten other states in banning the sale or transfer of assault weapons. It also suggested bans on large-capacity magazines, making 3D-printed “ghost guns,” and buying or owning conversion devices like bump stocks and glock switches.
It’s currently legal for Michiganders to buy a pistol or rifle from a private seller at 18 years old. The task force recommended raising the minimum age to 21 years old across the board, as 21 other US states have done.
Bagdasarian compared a recommendation to remove immunity from firearms manufacturers to the state’s suit against opioid makers that netted Michigan close to $2 billion to combat that epidemic.
“We’ve been able to use that type of financial accountability to combat another public health issue,” she said.
Brenden Boudreau, the director of Great Lakes Guns Rights, told Bridge in an interview a gun rights advocate should’ve been at the table, too.
“I’m not surprised by anything produced by this task force,” he said, slamming the report as “partisan” and “from a Democrat administration who’s shown to be hostile to the rights of Michiganders to keep and bear arms.”
At the same time, there was at least one recommendation in the report his organization could get behind — establishing some training and education requirements for school resource officers — as Boudreau’s group supports “hardening” schools against would-be shooters. The report also called for creating a statewide school safety tip line and a host of community
When Democrats controlled both chambers of the legislature in 2023 and 2024, they passed “red flag” gun confiscation laws, instituted safe storage requirements and required universal background checks for firearms sales.
Those laws need some polishing, the task force concluded.
Michigan’s red flag law allows judges to approve emergency risk protection orders, known as ERPOs, for authorities to seize guns from people they believe to be at risk of harming themselves or others for a specified period of time.
The task force recommended processes for implementing and enforcing ERPOS should be standardized statewide, including creating systems for notifying law enforcement and gun sellers of the restrictions during background checks. They also pushed for additional funding to promote awareness of the law. Law enforcement should also be mandated to serve and enforce the firearm bans, they wrote — some officials had pledged not to enforce the law before it was enacted but have since changed course.
The report also suggests expanding information about safe storage opportunities outside of homes and closing what task force members called a loophole where would-be gun buyers with concealed pistol licenses don’t need a background check or purchase permit, which could allow someone to buy a gun who might otherwise be ineligible.
“One man’s loopholes is another man’s freedom,” Boudreau countered. “Criminals are just going to keep doing what criminals do, which is ignore the law.”
Bagdasarian told Bridge the recommendations go beyond policy changes, though.
“We really need to have everyone at the table addressing this issue, because at the end of the day, we all want the same thing, and that is to keep our community safe, to keep our families safe and to keep our children safe,” she said.
Delivered just in time to poison your Thanksgiving Dinner conversations.
I guess to people who thought societal isolation and staying out of boats promoted safety from COVID (not to mention 100% masking and vaccination), these recommendations would make sense, too.
Lest you doubt the MGVPTF is expressing official Whitmer/Hertel health care policy, here is the MDHHS press release:
https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/inside-mdhhs/newsroom/2025/11/24/gvtf-report
New Gun Violence Prevention Task Force report makes commonsense recommendations to reduce gun violence, save lives in MichiganBy Lynn Sutfin - November 24, 2025Days before anniversary of Oxford school shooting, task force releases new report to continue momentum in reductions of deaths and injuries involving firearms
LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, which includes community partners, state departments, medical experts, law enforcement professionals, tribal representatives and academic researchers, released a new report today with recommendations designed to reduce gun violence. Developed over the last year with input from a wide range of advocates, the report focuses on the importance of implementing proven strategies to save lives.
Report recommendations include:
Waiting periods and background checks
Require waiting periods for all firearm purchases. This allows for a cooling-off period that can prevent impulsive acts of gun violence. They also allow for more time for a background check. States that require universal background checks are associated with 10% lower homicide rates.
Increase the eligible age of firearm purchase to 21. Studies suggest raising the minimum age reduces firearm suicide rates in young adults. Additionally, the parts of the brain responsible for impulse control and decision making are not fully developed before the age of 21.
Close the concealed pistol license loophole that allows an individual to purchase a firearm without a background check or permit. This will improve public safety by reducing the number of prohibited people who can own a firearm without oversight.Ban ghost guns
Ghost guns are untraceable firearms that don’t have serial numbers. Banning these will prevent individuals who are prohibited from owning firearms from acquiring untraceable weapons, improving public safety and reducing crime rates.
School and community safety
Strengthen existing school safety legislation. This will protect our students and make sure students who are struggling can get the help they need without harming others.
Standardize training for school resource officers and promote a single school safety tip line statewide. This will make sure there is a standard procedure for school resource officers to follow in case of an emergency, improving safety for our kids. Additionally, schools that use a safety tip line experienced 13.5% fewer incidents than schools without one.
Support Community Violence Intervention efforts. These programs are proven to break cycles of violence and address violence at the roots by supporting community members and making housing, mental health services and food more accessible to those in need.Stronger safe storage policies
Educate the public on secure firearm storage and expand access to free locking devices. Storing firearms securely ensures children cannot easily access firearms, preventing unintentional shootings, gun suicides and gun theft.
Policies to strengthen red flag laws and domestic violence protections
Create clear guidelines for firearm relinquishment. This is critical for public safety and will reduce homicides by creating a process for individuals prohibited from owning firearms to turn them into local law enforcement agencies.
Remove barriers for filing Extreme Risk Protection Orders and Personal Protection Orders and improve enforcement of orders. This will increase the ability for these life-saving tools to be implemented successfully in our communities.
Strengthen victim support services to address the harm of domestic violence.Assault Weapons
Prohibit the possession of large capacity magazines. The more rounds a shooter can fire without reloading, the more people they can hurt. No civilian needs a large capacity magazine – for personal safety or hunting. These are weapons of war and should be prohibited to reduce mass casualty deaths.
Prohibit the sale, possession, manufacture or transfer of assault weapons. Similar to large capacity magazines, these are weapons no civilian needs to own. They are often used in mass shootings. Prohibiting them will save lives.
Ban automatic conversion devices or “Glock switches,” devices that convert semiautomatic firearms into fully automatic guns.The Gun Violence Prevention Task Force also recommends the creation of a Firearm Safety Policy Implementation Team to guide the rollout of policy and programmatic proposals outlined above.
“This week, we mark the four-year anniversary of the shooting at Oxford High School, where we lost four precious lives,” said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. “While we’ve made significant progress since then, gun violence remains an epidemic, with over 11,000 preventable deaths and injuries just this year. We all want to keep Michiganders safe. These recommendations will help us do exactly that. Together, let’s keep getting it done and save lives.”
“No one should have to fear gun violence at home, school, church, work, or as they go about their daily lives,” said Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist II. “Governor Whitmer and I are proud of the progress we have made to prevent gun violence in Michigan, including our red flag laws, universal background checks and safe storage. These recommendations will build on our work and help us continue Standing Tall to save lives and keep Michiganders safe.”
“Firearms are now the leading cause of death among children and teens in the United States – surpassing motor vehicle accidents, drownings and childhood cancers – which underscores the urgent need for action,” said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive and chair of the Michigan Gun Violence Prevention Task Force. “This roadmap reflects the collective expertise and lived experiences of our task force and offers a clear, evidence-based path forward to protect Michigan families and save lives.”
“Michigan has the opportunity to realize enduring decreases in violence,” said Alia Harvey-Quinn, task force member and founder of FORCE Detroit. “It’s important that we take a well-researched approach to implementing community violence intervention (CVI) best practices in order to achieve lasting safety results. The Gun Violence Prevention Task Force report is an excellent tool for local leaders to draw from in designing and strengthening local CVI strategies.”
“Firearm suicide is the leading cause of firearm death nationally and statewide,” said Marianne Huff, president and CEO of Mental Health Association in Michigan and task force member. “This report includes expanding access to services, reducing stigma and ensuring that conversations about secure storage and crisis response are happening across health systems. When we connect the dots between mental health and safety, we save lives.”
The Michigan Gun Violence Prevention Task Force was created under Executive Order 2024-4, signed by Governor Whitmer to improve implementation of existing laws, maximize resources and strengthen coordination across sectors to reduce gun violence and save lives.
Housed within the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, task force membership reflects a wide range of expertise and lived experience. The University of Michigan Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention provided research and programmatic support for task force work.
To learn more about the task force and view the report, visit the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force webpage. Firearm injury and violence data is available on the Injury and Violence Data webpage.
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