Following a review of gun control strategies adopted by the Federal Government and in other States including Massachusetts, California, Michigan, Florida, and New York, this report summarizes the Graves Act. The Act mandates sentences for violent gun crimes, restricts sentencing judges from accepting plea bargains that dismiss or downgrade the firearms charges, and limits the suspension of sentences or the imposition of indeterminate terms for youthful offenders. The results of Phase I indicate that 80 percent of Graves offenders admitted to State prisons during the reporting period were convicted of a violent crime. Offender under age 30 represented 60 percent of the Graves admissions, and almost 96 percent were male. The percentage of Graves offenders in each racial or ethnic category is consistent with the percentage of total adult admissions and those receiving mandatory minimum sentences in New Jersey. More than half the Graves admissions had the sentences for unlawful possession of a firearm merged with the mandatory minimum term for the base offense; almost one-third of the offenders received a concurrent sentence for the unlawful possession of a firearm. In only 12 percent of the cases was the Graves charge the most serious offense. 10 tables, 6 figures, 60 references, and 5 appendixes