According to Gerney, Parsons, and Posner (2013), in the wake of mass shootings and other types of gun-related disasters, an increase in interest among the public , community leaders and elected officials, regarding identifying effective means through which to minimize the possibility of such incidents recurring. Some of the reactions in these times include the enactment of stricter gun control laws to limit the accessibility of firearms to individuals with the criminal intent to commit a gun-related crime. In Connecticut, gun laws were strengthened following the mass shooting of 6 adults and 20 children at their school in December 2012. Colorado similarly strengthened its gun control laws following the mass shooting of 1999 which occurred at Columbine High School. Before the shooting, there was a loophole in the law that allowed guns to be sold at gun shows without any background checks. This loophole was effectively sealed when Colorado voters approved a measure that would impose mandatory background checks for gun purchases, including at gun shows. Following the mass shooting of 20 children and 6 adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School, many states moved to tighten their gun laws. , particularly to limit the illegitimate use of firearms, as well as the possession of firearms by high-risk populations that include people with mental health problems, children, criminals and drug users. Some of the states that have tightened their gun control laws following the highly publicized Sandy Hook mass shooting and other similar incidents in the past include:1. New York2. California3. ColoradoThe following are the states ranked as having the strictest gun control laws. It is evident that these states with the str...... middle of the paper ......d are based on a maximum of 100%. Higher scores indicate stricter firearms control laws in the state, while lower scores indicate weaker firearms control laws in the country. From this survey, 42 states scored below 20% of the study's criteria, with an average of 9%. These findings reflect the findings of a research report used in the current study, which is based on states' geographic region and the extent to which it determines whether they implement lax or strict firearm control laws (Open Society Institute, 2002). In this study, Hawaii and Massachusetts ranked as the states with the least permissive firearm laws with scores of 71 and 76, respectively. States with moderate gun control laws included California with 53 points, Connecticut with 50 points, Maryland with 43, New Jersey with 35, Illinois with 35 and New York with 27.