Connections

Why is gun violence declining?

By Evan Dawson,

Megan Mack, Julie Williams

Published June 1, 2026 at 6:19 PM EDT

Two smiling men wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: the man at left has a black mustache and beard and is wearing a white and green baseball hat and a gray sweatshirt; the man at right has very short dark hair and is wearing glasses, a blue button-down shirt, jeans, and brown shoes. — Justin Morris with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Monday, June 1, 2026

In Rochester, gun violence is on a downward trend.

Those who work in gun violence prevention are concerned about the dangers of forgetting. That’s their way of saying that the community cannot afford to become complacent.

This hour, a local gun violence prevention counselor talks about what is actually working on the street, and what is not. In studio:

Justin Morris, founder and CEO of Untrapped Ministries

Connections

Evan Dawson

Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.

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Megan Mack

Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.

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Julie Williams

Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.

See stories by Julie Williams