Trigger Points

Inside the Mission to Stop Mass Shootings in America

By: Mark Follman

Narrated by: Mark Deakins

"An urgent read that illuminates real possibility for change.” —John Carreyrou, New York Times bestselling author of Bad Blood

For the first time, a story about the specialized teams of forensic psychologists, FBI agents, and other experts who are successfully stopping mass shootings—a hopeful, myth-busting narrative built on new details of infamous attacks, never-before-told accounts from perpetrators and survivors, and real-time immersion in confidential threat cases, casting a whole new light on how to solve a grievous problem

It's time to go beyond all the thoughts and prayers, misguided blame on mental illness, and dug-in disputes over the Second Amendment. Through meticulous reporting and panoramic storytelling, award-winning journalist Mark Follman chronicles the decades-long search for identifiable profiles of mass shooters and brings listeners inside a groundbreaking method for preventing devastating attacks. The emerging field of behavioral threat assessment, with its synergy of mental health and law enforcement expertise, focuses on circumstances and behaviors leading up to planned acts of violence—warning signs that offer a chance for constructive intervention before it's too late.

Beginning with the pioneering study in the late 1970s of "criminally insane" assassins and the stalking behaviors discovered after the murder of John Lennon and the shooting of Ronald Reagan in the early 1980s, Follman traces how the field of behavioral threat assessment first grew out of Secret Service investigations and FBI serial-killer hunting. Soon to be revolutionized after the tragedies at Columbine and Virginia Tech, and expanded further after Sandy Hook and Parkland, the method is used increasingly today to thwart attacks brewing within American communities.

As Follman examines threat-assessment work throughout the country, he goes inside the FBI's elite Behavioral Analysis Unit and immerses in an Oregon school district's innovative violence-prevention program, the first such comprehensive system to prioritize helping kids and avoid relying on punitive measures. With its focus squarely on progress, the story delves into consequential tragedies and others averted, revealing the dangers of cultural misunderstanding and media sensationalism along the way. Ultimately, Follman shows how the nation could adopt the techniques of behavioral threat assessment more broadly, with powerful potential to save lives.

Eight years in the making, Trigger Points illuminates a way forward at a time when the failure to prevent mass shootings has never been more costly—and the prospects for stopping them never more promising.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Mark Follman (P)2022 HarperCollins Publishers

Very informative.

Great reading, great voice and perfect emphasis. Does not highlight the shooters themselves for more than a few seconds each and really places the value on the victim. Well done to the author!

Thank You!

Thank you for all of the research, time, and effort that was put forth to write this necessary book. I have recommended it to many of my friends and family read, and or, listen to.

Good but left Slanted

The books message is good and very valuable to those of us who work in the field and are developing Threat Assessment Teams. However, this is the second book In a row in which a leftist has to sling their political message into the book. Just leave it out the politics and provide the information.

shocking, inspiring, and profound resilience

This guided walk through the history of school and workplace shootings and the struggles to change laws and cope with their aftermath is awe inspiring

insightful and informative

This book was very well put together and presented, offering insightful and informative insights about the issues surrounding massing shootings and their perpetrators.

Non political look at gun violence

The reader was excellent. New ideas to stop violence. Did not know prior to listening all the undercover work to get help to potential shooters.

A better way to go

The author makes a persuasive case that we can reduce mass shootings by detecting certain behaviors that are predictive of a shooting, and intervening to prevent it. A pragmatic approach that is a better way to go than the pipe dream ending gun ownership.

Overall look at mass shootings and solutions

Very good look at mass shootings and solutions that shouldn't frighten gun owners and centers on prevention.

upstream approach

Trigger points shows an upstream approach to addressing violence. very thought provoking and important. I highly recommend, especially if you work in a field with children and adolescents. we can all be a part of the solution.

Amazingly hopeful

I bought this book a while ago and put it off reading it for probably a year. I was expecting it to be incredibly depressing and pessimistic. I'm glad I finally listened to it. While it's still a depressing topic, the approach by the author and the information shared actually gave me a glimmer of hope that we could bring mass shootings to an end in this society. I don't know when and I don't know how the political will will be gained without more discussion of threat assessment teams and support, as opposed to sensational politicization. But I applaud the media members who bring the author on their shows, rather than politicians. Awareness seems to be the best way forward.