Dennis A. Henigan is the Vice President for Law and Policy at the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence and Founder of its Legal Action Project. He is the author of Lethal Logic: Exploding the Myths that Paralyze American Gun Policy (Potomac Books 2009).

For twenty years, he has been a leading advocate for stronger gun laws, appearing dozens of times on national television and radio shows, including 60 Minutes, The Today Show, Nightline, Larry King Live and Dateline. He also has written and spoken extensively on liability and constitutional issues relating to gun laws and gun violence, including testifying before several Congressional Committees.

Under his direction, Brady Center lawyers have recovered millions of dollars in damages for gun violence victims, as well as winning precedent-setting decisions on the liability of gun sellers. In 2004, he was named one of the top ten “Lawyers of the Year” by Lawyers’ Weekly magazine. His work as a public interest lawyer has been profiled in The New Yorker.

Henigan received his B.A. from Oberlin College in 1973 and his law degree in 1977 from the University of Virginia School of Law. Prior to joining the Brady Center in 1989, he was a partner in the law firm of Foley & Lardner.

Blog Entries by Dennis A. Henigan

Who Does the NRA Represent?

Posted December 23, 2009 | 03:51 PM (EST)


At a recent social gathering, I was approached by a gentleman who had heard I had written a book about the gun control issue. "I am a gun owner," he began. I braced myself for the usual lecture on the sacrosanct Second Amendment and the futility of gun regulation. What...

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The Gun Industry's "Insider": A Tribute to Bob Ricker

10 Comments | Posted December 11, 2009 | 11:23 AM (EST)


It was May of 2001 and I was sitting at the counsels' table in the courtroom of the California Supreme Court, preparing to argue a case against notorious assault weapon manufacturer Navegar, Inc. for the victims of a mass shooting at the 101 California St. office building in San Francisco....

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Bury This Book! Amazon.com and the Gun Issue

160 Comments | Posted December 3, 2009 | 11:34 AM (EST)


I have recently discovered that much can be learned about the gun control issue from an unlikely source: Amazon.com.

I suspect I'm not the first author to be preoccupied by the "customer reviews" posted on Amazon. After all, they are the first, and most conspicuous, indication of how a book...

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Good People, Bad People and the Fort Hood Shootings

39 Comments | Posted November 18, 2009 | 11:08 AM (EST)


As our nation continues to contemplate the horror of the Fort Hood shootings, one revelation about Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan caught my eye. In 1996, after completing his official "NRA Personal Protection Course," he was issued a permit in Virginia to carry a concealed weapon. Virginia is one of...

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Guns in Montana and Tennessee: Is Secession Next?

28 Comments | Posted November 2, 2009 | 01:33 PM (EST)


We know that individuals can defy the law. Can a state legislature defy the law? When it comes to the gun issue, apparently it can.

I refer to the extraordinary legislation passed into law by the states of Montana and Tennessee declaring that guns or ammunition manufactured and...

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For the Gun Lobby, Ignorance is Bliss

95 Comments | Posted October 23, 2009 | 11:41 AM (EST)


I noticed a recent article in the Washington Times (which is to print what Fox News is to TV) that had me thinking, "Here we go again."

The article, headlined "U.S., after long ban, quietly begins to study gun safety," reported, with barely-concealed alarm, that the National Institutes of...

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Two Gun Dealers Who Won't Be Missed

25 Comments | Posted October 16, 2009 | 02:58 PM (EST)


Recently the press reported two items of good news in the fight against gun violence, but even good news reminds us of how far we need to go.

The Seattle Times reported that Brian Borgelt, the former owner of Bull's Eye Shooter Supply, the notorious Tacoma, Washington gun shop...

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The Gun Issue Is Back in the Supreme Court: What Does It Mean?

266 Comments | Posted October 5, 2009 | 03:42 PM (EST)


It is no surprise that the Supreme Court has decided to hear the so far unsuccessful constitutional challenge to the Chicago handgun ban. The Court's ruling last year in District of Columbia v. Heller, discovering a new Second Amendment right to personal gun possession unrelated to militia service, determined...

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Obama and the Gun Lobby: A Policy of Appeasement?

158 Comments | Posted September 15, 2009 | 11:31 AM (EST)


"Appeasement." What word better describes the current attitude of the Obama administration, and many in the Democratic Party, toward the gun lobby?

The word recently was invoked by syndicated columnist Marie Cocco referring to the approach of the White House to the gun issue. "Obama and the Democrats haven't...

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Guns, Guns, Everywhere

113 Comments | Posted August 21, 2009 | 11:25 AM (EST)


Every so often, we get a picture -- with crystal clarity -- of the kind of country the radical "gun rights" crowd wants America to be. It allows us to understand just how much is at stake in the gun control debate.

It apparently is not enough for opponents of...

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Toddlers Killing Toddlers, with Guns

74 Comments | Posted August 13, 2009 | 05:02 PM (EST)


The BBC recently ran a story that explains much about why the rest of the industrialized world has long been puzzled and horrified at U.S. policies toward guns. The story reported that, in the space of twenty-four hours, two young American children had been shot by their young siblings....

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NRA on Sotomayor: Extremism Revealed

142 Comments | Posted August 5, 2009 | 05:13 PM (EST)


The National Rifle Association is not known for fighting battles it cannot win. But its opposition to the Sotomayor nomination was destined to be an exercise in futility. Many observers are puzzled as to how the NRA could make such an obviously misguided strategic decision. Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.)...

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Taking Gun Laws Seriously

114 Comments | Posted July 30, 2009 | 11:57 AM (EST)


We've all heard the gun lobby's refrain, "Guns don't kill people. People kill people." This clever slogan has long been used to suggest that because guns don't become a problem until they are misused by dangerous people, the only sensible approach to gun violence is to punish violent criminals, not...

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Senators Choke on Gun Lobby Hypocrisy

262 Comments | Posted July 23, 2009 | 03:22 PM (EST)


In May, the Senate voted for an amendment (to the credit card reform bill) pushed by the National Rifle Association allowing individuals to carry loaded guns in national parks, as long as they are in compliance with state law. One purpose of the amendment, according to its sponsor, Senator...

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What the "Gun Rights" People Really Want: A Heller Do-over

107 Comments | Posted July 14, 2009 | 05:43 PM (EST)


The "gun rights" community is in full-throated opposition to the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court and the pressure is building on the National Rifle Association to join the party. Last week, 26 well-recognized pro-gun partisans signed a letter opposing her nomination, led by former NRA...

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Strong Enforcement of Weak Gun Laws? Not Enough

64 Comments | Posted July 8, 2009 | 05:04 PM (EST)


When House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was asked about legislation to ban assault weapons, she responded, "On that score, I think we need to enforce the laws we have right now."

When President Obama was asked by Bob Schieffer on Face the Nation about whether he plans...

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Planes, Guns and Terrorists

79 Comments | Posted June 30, 2009 | 11:47 AM (EST)


Should suspected terrorists be blocked from buying guns before they commit a violent crime? The gun lobby apparently doesn't think so.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently made the astounding discovery that, in the five years ending in February, 2009, 865 individuals on the government's terrorist watch list were...

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Is Gun Control a Cultural Issue?

166 Comments | Posted June 22, 2009 | 03:36 PM (EST)


Gun control frequently is referred to - alongside issues like abortion and gay rights - as a "cultural" issue. Indeed, it is fashionable in some quarters to refer to the cluster of cultural issues as "God, guns, and gays." The Obama Administration has taken some heat for its failure to...

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