Agencies
Services
Resources
Contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline if you are experiencing mental health-related distress or are worried about a loved one who may need crisis support. Call or text 988. Chat at 988lifeline.org. Visit the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for more information at 988lifeline.org.
Safe Storage Resources
Several organizations have created materials to help increase awareness of safe storage.
Examples of general/broad safe storage-related awareness materials.
Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts
The Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts (AOIC) assists the Illinois Supreme Court with its general administrative and supervisory authority over all Illinois courts. AOIC provides forms for the Firearm Restraining Order process.
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is a voluntary health organization that gives those affected by suicide a nationwide community empowered by research, education, and advocacy to take action against this leading cause of death. AFSP collaborated with the National Shooting Sports Foundation to make suicide prevention education a basic component of firearms ownership and to distribute materials to retailers and ranges (brochure). Resources are available for parents on understanding youth mental health and preventing unauthorized access to firearms (guide), how to have a real conversation with those you are concerned with, and common risk factors and warning signs. AFSP also created a special module of its Talk Saves Lives suicide prevention education program, specifically geared to suicide prevention and firearms safety.
Be SMART Campaign
The Be SMART campaign promotes responsible gun ownership in order to reduce child gun deaths. The word SMART stands for Secure all firearms in your home and vehicle, Model responsible behavior around firearms, Ask about the presence of unsecure firearms in other homes, Recognize the role of firearms in suicide, and Tell your peers to be S-M-A-R-T. The campaign provides information about secure storage and gun safety, asking about the presence of guns in a home before your child visits (Spanish), secure storage toolkit, secure storage practices to reduce gun violence (Spanish), guide to secure gun storage devices (Spanish), facts and resources on child firearm suicide (Spanish), talking to your children about guns (Spanish), keeping your home safe with secure storage, protecting LGBTQ+ youth from firearm suicide (Spanish), and videos.
Brady: United Against Gun Violence
Brady – the nation’s oldest gun violence prevention organization – works to enact reasonable solutions to free America from gun violence. They tackle three critical areas: change the laws, change the industry, and change the culture. By changing hearts and minds and fostering a culture of responsible gun use and ownership, America can be free from gun violence.
End Family Fire
End Family Fire is a movement to promote responsible gun ownership. A partnership between Brady and the Ad Council, its mission is to encourage safe gun storage in the home. Family fire refers to a shooting caused by someone having access to a gun from the home when they shouldn’t have it. End Family Fire provides information about safe storage, firearm-related suicides, and unintentional shootings. Various resources are available, such as a brochure, campaign toolkit, public service announcements, and stories. ASK: Asking Saves Kids (June 21) is part of the End Family Fire campaign and encourages parents and guardians to add one more question to this conversation: "Is there an unlocked gun where my child plays?"
Harvard – Means Matters
The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Means Matter Campaign is to increase the proportion of suicide prevention groups who promote activities that reduce a suicidal person’s access to lethal means of suicide and who develop active partnerships with gun owner groups to prevent suicide. Firearm-related data and resources are included within the Means Matters materials. Some of the topics include firearm access is a risk factor for suicide, youth access to firearms, lethal means counseling, and the relationship between guns and impulsive suicides. Means Matters provides recommendations for families on protecting a loved one during a suicidal crisis, for suicide prevention groups and local communities on a plan for action to reduce a suicidal person’s access to firearms and other lethal means, for clinicians on counseling at-risk patients/clients and their families about reducing access to firearms and other lethal means, and for colleges and universities on steps for assessing and implementing means restriction on campus
Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority
The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA) is a state agency dedicated to improving the administration of criminal justice. Researchers at ICJIA released a publication explaining firearm restraining orders in Illinois.
Illinois Department of Public Health
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is an advocate for and partner with the people of Illinois to re-envision health policy and promote health equity, prevent and protect against disease and injury, and prepare for health emergencies. Under Public Act 102-0345, IDPH was tasked, subject to appropriation or other available funding, to conduct a program to promote awareness of firearm restraining orders to the general public.
Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board
The Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board (ILETSB) is the state agency mandated to promote and to maintain a high level of professional standards for law enforcement and correctional officers. Under Public Act 102-0345, ILETSB was tasked to develop and to approve a standard curriculum for a training program on the Firearms Restraining Order Act.
Illinois Legal Aid Online
The Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) is a nonprofit organization with the mission to open opportunities for justice by educating Illinoisans about their rights and connecting them to lawyers, solutions, and each other. ILAO shares an overview of FROs and who can be contacted to assist with filing a petition for a FRO.
Illinois State Police
The Illinois State Police (ISP) protects public safety and pursues justice for the people of Illinois. The ISP director chairs the Commission on Implementing the Firearm Restraining Order, which created a model policy to provide an overall framework law enforcement can follow to secure and execute a FRO.
Injury Free Coalition for Kids
The Injury Free Coalition for Kids is among the country's most effective injury prevention programs. This is a national program developed with funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and is comprised of hospital-based, community-oriented programs whose efforts are anchored in research, education, and advocacy. Injury Free Coalition for Kids created a parent’s safety checklist, safety presentation, and a list of research papers related to firearm injury prevention.
Injury Prevention and Research Center at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago
The Injury Prevention and Research Center (IPRC) addresses the leading causes of injury to Illinois children through behavioral risk reduction and the promotion of safe physical and social environments. Several IPRC programs include firearms safety-related resources, including a gun safety toolkit and resources for parents (pages 3-6 of the Firearm Safety Toolkit), safe storage flyer (Spanish, Arabic), and local resources for comprehensive suicide prevention and care.
National Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Resource Center - Johns Hopkins
The Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, established the National ERPO Resource Center (ERC). The ERC is a training and technical assistance hub designed to support states and localities with the implementation of their ERPO programs to reduce gun violence and save lives. It created a website as a resource for state-specific information, technical assistance, research, and other educational materials for anyone interested in implementing ERPO laws.
Office of the Illinois Attorney General
The Office of the Illinois Attorney General works to ensure that Illinois' laws and policies are effective and are upheld so that communities can be safe places to live, to work, and to nurture children. Attorneys, investigators, and staff across several functional areas are committed to violence prevention and to serving those who may become victims of violent crime. It provides resources to promote safer communities, including a brochure for communities and families to understand the firearm restraining order (FRO). Additional resources that are provided to law enforcement agencies include a fact sheet and trainings.
Project ChildSafe – National Shooting Sports Foundation
Project ChildSafe is a program of the National Shooting Sports Foundation to promote firearms safety and education. Project ChildSafe collaborates with local law enforcement agencies, such as those in Illinois, to provide Safety Kits. The kits include a cable-style gun-locking device and a brochure (also available in Spanish) that discusses safe handling and secure storage guidelines to help deter access by unauthorized individuals. Project ChildSafe provides resources for educators, law enforcement, parents, gun owners, and partner organizations.
The Ad Council Research Institute
The Ad Council Research Institute (ACRI) leverages the Ad Council’s insight-driven approach to examine some of the most important social issues. ACRI and the Joyce Foundation released an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Study that provides a deeper look into ERPOs, how to effectively speak about these laws with the public, and how to drive more awareness and understanding of them.
The Joyce Foundation
The Joyce Foundation is a private, nonpartisan philanthropy that invests in public policies and strategies to advance racial equity and economic mobility for the next generation in the Great Lakes region. The Joyce Foundation has hosted several webinars to increase awareness of extreme risk protection orders.
