Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I discuss a new filing from Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones in defense of the state's new "assault firearm" ban, where he claimed the Virginia state constitution does not protect an individual right to bear arms. We also cover the DOJ's latest Second Amendment investigation into the city of Philadelphia's pattern of subjective gun-permit revocations.

Stories
-https://thereload.com/analysis-how-virginia-is-defending-its-new-ar-15-ban-in-court-member-exclusive/
-https://thereload.com/doj-opens-second-amendment-investigation-into-philadelphia-police/
-https://thereload.com/supreme-court-turns-down-doj-appeal-in-non-violent-felon-gun-case/
-https://thereload.com/texas-senate-candidate-talarico-says-hed-break-with-democrats-on-guns-offers-no-specifics/

This week, we're looking at a sorely undercovered national story: the murder rate is declining at an incredible rate. At the same time, the suicide rate is headed the other way.

To explore why that divergence has happened, we've got Pew Research Center's John Gramlich on the show to discuss the details. He wrote a piece looking at the most recent FBI and CDC data on gun murder and suicide. He said the results are remarkable.

The murder rate is plummeting. It's back to pre-pandemic levels and shows no sign of leveling off. Gramlich said the decline is incredible and rare.

He also described how the role of guns in murder has changed over time as well. The post-pandemic data shows that the portion of guns used in murders has shifted significantly.

The same is true for the portion of gun deaths that are due to suicides rather than murders. Largely, Gramlich noted, because murders have fallen substantially while suicides have gone up a bit. Even though the gun suicide rate didn't climb dramatically, as the gun murder rate did in 2020, it has slowly climbed to near-record rates.

Meanwhile, Gramlich said crime data from sources beyond the FBI and CDC indicate the gun murder rate is nearing record lows.

Here's a link to John's piece: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/04/28/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-us/

Special Guest: John Gramlich.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I cover new data showing Virginia's monthly gun sales doubling year-over-year, landing it in the number 2 spot in the nation for long gun sales, as the state's new "assault firearm" ban is set to take effect. We also cover the legal fight over the state's universal background check law, where gun-rights groups successfully convinced a judge to continue preventing its enforcement for now.

Stories:
-https://thereload.com/gun-rights-groups-warn-virginia-police-against-enforcing-enjoined-background-check-law/
-https://thereload.com/analysis-how-a-scotus-footnote-keeps-dooming-silencer-challenges-member-exclusive/

This week, we're looking into reporting on racism in New Jersey's gun permitting process.

That's why we're talking to Aymann Ismail of Slate Magazine, who both experienced issues with his own gun application and interviewed many other minorities in the same situation. He said a Newark permitting official had withdrawn his first gun purchase permit application against his will over an old trespassing misdemeanor that shouldn't have disqualified him. It wasn't until later that he found he wasn't alone in having trouble getting a license.

One Ismail began talking to other minority gun owners in New Jersey he found out many of them had issues with the system. Whether it was long delays or outright denials for improper reasons, he said it was a recurring problem. Then he talked to an activist tracking the disparity between applicants who found there was a ten-to-one denial rate for black New Jersians compared to white ones, and that was for applicants without disqualifying records.

Ismail also discussed how he personally went from growing up afraid of guns in Newark to taking range trips with his brother to finally buying a Sig Sauer pistol. He talked about why he often feels uncomfortable and out of place in gun spaces as an arab muslim. But he aslo explained why he decided to buy a gun anyway, and where he thinks he'll go from here as a new gun owner.

Special Guest: Aymann Ismail.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I cover a new analysis of violent crime data that appears to show a further record drop in murder. We also discuss New York Governor Kathy Hochul's signing of a novel restriction on 3D printers aimed at preventing them from being used to create gun parts.

Stories:
-https://thereload.com/report-america-on-track-for-lowest-murder-rate-ever/
-https://thereload.com/new-york-bans-digital-gun-files-aims-at-3d-printers-capable-of-using-them/
-https://thereload.com/eighth-circuit-dismisses-challenge-to-minnesota-gun-carry-reciprocity-restrictions/
-https://thereload.com/analysis-where-is-dojs-gun-rights-restoration-plan-member-exclusive/
-https://www.virginiascope.com/virginia-state-police-to-start-background-checks-on-private-gun-sales-again/

This week, we're taking gun policy and politics questions from our members.

It's been a while since we've done a Q&A, and quite a lot has happened. So, we're answering everything we can fit into an hour-long podcast. Turns out that's a lot!

Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I tackle all sorts of topics. We cover everything from the latest on the Department of Justice lawsuits against Colorado and Denver's magazine and AR-15 bans to the Supreme Court's appetite for new Second Amendment cases to the future of the National Firearms Act. We also discuss the ATF rule changing record-keeping requirements for background checks.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I cover a recent ruling out of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals striking down New York's default ban on licensed carry in publicly accessible private property. We also discuss the absence of gun policy in public opinion polls, the ATF's assurances to trans gun owners regarding its proposed gender rule, and the rise in Virginia prosecutors pledging not to enforce the state's "assault firearm" ban.

Stories:
-https://thereload.com/second-circuit-strikes-down-new-york-vampire-rule/
-https://thereload.com/analysis-voters-put-guns-way-down-the-totem-poll-headed-into-the-midterms-member-exclusive/
-https://thereload.com/atf-says-gender-id-rule-change-isnt-a-trans-gun-ban/
-https://thereload.com/some-virginia-prosecutors-refuse-to-enforce-new-gun-bans/
-https://www.thetrace.org/2026/05/philadelphia-black-lions-gun-permits/
-https://www.npr.org/2026/05/20/nx-s1-5810190/gun-rights-trump-rules-atf

This week, we're speaking directly to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

The bureau just released dozens of new gun rule proposals. We've examined the details of them ourselves, we've discussed them with representatives of the gun industry, and now we're hearing directly from the man who spearheaded the effort. That's ATF Chief Counsel Robert Leider.

He joins the show to explain the bureau's thinking on the dozens of changes. He claims the ATF's goal was to streamline and, especially, modernize the gun buying process. Leider said the goal was both to remove burdens on gun owners and gun dealers, especially as a contrast to the previous administration's "zero-tolerance" approach to industry oversight.

He said he looked to shrink the background check form down as small as possible while still complying with federal law. Leider also said he found ways to shrink the burden on gun businesses as well, primarily by allowing them to store records electronically and by reducing how long they need to keep them. He then responded to criticism that the time should be reduced even further than what the ATF has proposed.

Additionally, Leider directly said the rule requiring anyone filling out any ATF form to use their birth gender is not a trans gun ban. He said even if the gender listed on somebody's state ID did not match what the ATF is telling them to put on the background check form, it wouldn't result in a gun sale denial. He also said the ATF plans to offer official guidance to gun stores on how to handle situations like that once the rule is finalized.

Leider also defended the breadth of many of the rules. He said they were designed to survive legal scrutiny, which the larger swings the bureau took under the Biden Administration couldn't.

Special Guest: Robert Leider.