Melde, C., Circo, G., Zeoli, A., Wolfe, S., Sadler, R. C., Oliphant, S., Almanza, M., & O’Brien, M. (2025). Drunk and dangerous? Exploring the tenuous links among drunk driving, alcohol arrests, and firearm violence in an urban context. Journal of Criminal Justice, 98, 102406. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2025.102406
Abstract
Recent research and policy discussions have focused on prohibiting individuals with repeat alcohol-related offenses from purchasing or possessing firearms. To expand on this work, we use linked administrative data from a cohort sample (n = 36,274) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin residents to assess the association between arrests for alcohol-related offenses and later involvement in gun violence as either a shooting suspect or victim. Findings suggest arrests for operating a vehicle while intoxicated and other alcohol-related offenses were associated with increased risk of firearm-related violence only in models that did not account for other forms of offending, while no association was observed after controlling for non-violent or violent arrest histories. Our findings suggest that alcohol-related offenses do not act as an efficient marker of future firearm violence risk in Milwaukee. Policies that restrict firearm purchase or possession based on alcohol-related offenses may therefore do little to address gun violence in urban contexts.