PIRELLI Gun Evaluations

Do you need a mental health evaluation for gun ownership? Gun evaluations are in great need and Dr. Pirelli is a leading expert in the guns and mental health arena. In addition to being Board Certified in Forensic Psychology and licensed in NJ, PA, and NY, he and his colleagues have literally ‘written the book’ on the connection between firearms and mental health. He and Dr. Sarah DeMarco have also written another gun-related book with Oxford for other doctors and professionals in the field: “Firearms and Clinical Practice: A Handbook for Medical and Mental Health Professionals.”

As experts in this area, Drs. Pirelli and DeMarco speak with gun owners, applicants, and their attorneys on, essentially, a daily basis. Mental health evaluations for gun ownership, or simply, ‘gun evaluations’ – especially in NJ, PA, and NY – require professional and culture competence, which is extremely hard to find. Dr. Pirelli is regularly asked to provide trainings and talks to a wide range of professional and community groups in this area of expertise, and he and his colleagues have also published a number of peer-reviewed articles in this area (see below).

The doctors at PCFP are highly skilled and conduct gun evaluations in a range of matters, such as those pertaining to: 

Gun Permit Applications and Appeals (Firearms Purchaser ID Cards)

Mental Health Expungements

Gun Forfeitures…[incl. restraining orders: TRO, FRO, and ‘Red Flag’ confiscations – TERPO, FERPO]

Civilian Carry and Retired Law Enforcement Officer Program (RPO) Permits

*and…

Pre-Employment and Fitness-for-Duty

-Armed Security

-Criminal Matters (e.g., Graves Act), and more...

PCFP gun evaluations and reports are comprehensive, data-based, empirically-driven, and designed to be directly applied to the specific federal/state laws, administrative language, and referral questions at hand. A mental health evaluation for gun ownership with PCFP is a comprehensive forensic evaluation with a full report consistent with the highest standards of practice in the field. PCFP evals and reports seek to include data from the following sources:

(i) record review, (ii) clinical-forensic interviews, (iii) psychological testing, and (iv) collateral interviews.

They include:

(a) a full psychological assessment, including history and current functioning across relevant areas; (b) a focus on the referral incidents/issues; (c) inclusion of a number of firearm-specific considerations; and (d) an assessment of specific legal prohibitor areas and related risk levels, such as those related to violence, suicide, mental health, substance use, domestic violence, and legal histories.

Contact us to discuss your gun evaluation needs today. You may reach Dr. Pirelli by phone at (973) 944-0810 or by email: pirelli@gpirelli.com, or Dr. DeMarco by phone at 973-771-6108 or by email: demarco@gpirelli.com

NOTABLE GUN-RELATED PUBLICATIONS AND TRAININGS/TALKS

BOOKS

Pirelli, G. & DeMarco, S. (2023). Firearms and Clinical Practice: A Handbook for Medical and Mental Health Professionals. Oxford University Press.

Pirelli, G., Wechsler, H., & Cramer, R. (2019). The Behavioral Science of Firearms: A Mental Health Perspective on Guns, Suicide, and Violence. Oxford University Press.

BOOK CHAPTER

Pirelli, G., Wechsler, H., & Schrantz, K. (2020, invited). The Emerging Role in Shaping U.S. Gun Policy. In: M.K. Miller and B.H. Bornstein (Eds.), Advances in Psychology and Law. Springer.

PROFESSIONAL ARTICLES

Pirelli, G., & Gold, L. H. (2019). Leaving Lake Wobegon: Firearm-related education and training for medical and mental health professionals is an essential competence. Journal of Aggression, Conflict and Peace Research, 11(2), 78-87.

Pirelli, G., & Witt, P. H. (2018). Firearms and cultural competence: Considerations for mental health practitioners. Journal of Aggression, Conflict and Peace Research, 10(1), 61-70.

Pirelli, G., Wechsler, H., & Cramer, R. (2015). Psychological evaluations for firearm ownership: Legal foundations, practice considerations, and a conceptual framework. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 46(4), 250-257.

Pirelli, G., & Witt, P. (2015). Psychological evaluations for civilian firearm ownership in New Jersey. New Jersey Psychologist, 65(1), 7-9.

WORKSHOPS, SEMINARS, INVITED TALKS

*Given to medical doctors as well as other professional groups, including but not limited to hospitals, schools, battered women’s groups, the VA, and gun ranges. Here are some examples:

Firearm-Related Competence for Clinicians: Professional and Cultural Considerations (2020 October). *Invited Keynote Speaker, New York State Psychological Association (NYSPA), 82nd Annual (Virtual) Convention.

Duty to Warn and Protect: Considerations for New Jersey Psychologists.(January 2020). Invited Workshop for the Northeast Counties Association of Psychologists (NCAP). Cresskill, NJ.

Applied Risk Assessment: Key Principles for New Jersey Clinicians.(January 2020). CE Workshop for Independent Psychology Group Practice. Essex County, NJ.

The Behavioral Science of Firearms: A Mental Health Perspective on Guns, Suicide, and Violence. (Dec. 2019). Continuing Education (CE) Workshop for CONCEPT, Palo Alto University, CA.

Identifying and Managing Firearm-Related Risk Factors. (October 2019). Invited Staff Training, Woodland Park Range/Gun for Hire, Woodland Park, NJ.

Duty to Warn and Protect: Considerations for New Jersey Psychologists. (September 2019). Invited Workshop for the Morris County Psychological Association (MCPA). Florham Park, NJ.

The Behavioral Science of Firearms: Understanding Guns, Domestic and Interpersonal Violence, Suicide, Mental Health and Substance Use in Context. (May 2019), Continuing Education (CE) Workshop. Verona, NJ.

Guns and mental health: A primer for New Jersey counselors (April 2019). 2019 New Jersey Counseling Assoc. (NJCA) Conference, Brookdale Community College, Lincroft, NJ.

Warning Signs of Firearm-Involved Violence and Suicide. (2018 November). Invited Staff Training, Reloaderz Gun Range, Wayne, New Jersey.

The Behavioral Science of Firearms: Contemporary Issues. (September 2018). Invited Featured Speaker: New Jersey 2A Firearms Education Conference. Vineland, NJ.

Firearm-Related Issues for Family Physicians (2018 May). Invited e-Learning Webinar, American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians (ACOFP).

A Framework for Identifying, Assessing and Managing College-Aged Students of Concern (2018 April). Invited Seminar, Meeting of the Chief Student Affairs Officers

Organization of Independent Schools of New Jersey (CSAOs of AICUNJ) at Centenary University NJ.

Firearms and Domestic and Intimate Partner Violence: Considerations for Professionals. (2018 May). Invited CE, Jersey Battered Women’s Service Conference, Morris Plains, NJ.

A Primer on Firearms and Firearm-Related Issues for Medical and Mental Health Professionals. (2018 February). Invited Grand Rounds, Morristown Medical Ctr, NJ.

Guns, DV, and the VA: Clinical Applications of Firearm-Related Issues for VA Mental Health Professionals. (2018 January). Invited Training, U.S. Dept. of Veteran’s Affairs, East Orange, NJ.

Implementing a Risk Management and Reduction-Based Approach in University Settings. (2018 January). Invited Seminar, William Paterson Univ. Student of Concern Committee.

Firearms and Domestic Violence-Related Considerations in Military, Law Enforcement and Correctional Populations. (2017 November). Invited Continuing Education Training, NJ Psychological Association Fall Conference, Iselin, NJ.

The Behavioral Science of Firearms: Considerations for Legal Professionals. (2017, September). Invited CLE Seminar, New Jersey 2A Firearms Education Conference, Princeton, NJ.

Firearm-Related Considerations in School Settings. (2017 September). Invited Training, Monmouth County Association of Directors of Special Education, Freehold, NJ.

The Behavioral Science of Firearms: A Primer for Psychologists. (2017 February). Invited CE Seminar, NJPA Forensic Committee.

Firearms and Mental Health: A Primer for Psychologists (2016 April). Invited CE Seminar, Morris County Psychological Association, Florham Park, NJ.

Psychology and Firearms (2015 June). A seminar for Woodland Park Range, Woodland Park, NJ.

Firearms and Violence: Psychological Considerations Across Contexts (2015 March). Back Story with Joan Goldstein, Princeton, NJ.