Justice Department hires More Guns, Less Crime author John Lott

The Justice Department hired a Second Amendment advocate last month who has argued that crime could be reduced through less gun control.

John Lott, 62, was hired to be a senior adviser for research and statistics at the Office of Justice Programs division, which provides over $5 billion in annual grants.

“I took a job at the Department of Justice. I’m really not supposed to say more than that,” Lott told Politico.

Lott came to the agency from a nonprofit organization he founded in 2013, dubbed the Crime Prevention Research Center, which studies the “relationship between laws regulating the ownership or use of guns, crime, and public safety.”

Among the organization’s board of directors is musician Ted Nugent and former Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke, who has been a vocal supporter of President Trump since his 2016 run for office.

Lott, who holds a doctorate from the University of California, Los Angeles, also is known for his 1998 book titled More Guns, Less Crime and for opining in publications about rolling back gun laws. Last month, Lott penned a piece in the Wall Street Journal titled “Democrats are Coming for Your Guns.”

In addition, Lott has testified in several congressional hearings about gun control and has been critical of legacy media’s coverage of conservative issues and the Trump administration.

The OJP division provides grants to police departments and nonprofit groups and helps conduct research into the causes of crime and gathers statistics on criminal justice issues.

Lott’s appointment comes as gun sales have soared in 2020, a year that has been defined by the coronavirus pandemic, a high-profile presidential election, and a summer of nationwide protests over racial injustice.

More than 17 million people across the country have purchased firearms in 2020. Citing the National Shooting Sports Foundation, CBS News reported in early November that 17.2 million background checks were completed this year, versus 15.7 million in 2016, the previous high record for gun sales. The group said the number of first-time gun buyers neared 5 million people.