Missouri Democrat proposes gun ban for domestic abusers

Reeves had threatened to kill his fiance and her children the year before but took a plea that allowed him to enter veteran’s court and see a judge weekly. He also said law enforcement should be hesitant when it comes to removing guns from those who were accused but not yet convicted.

“It’s important that we continue to always find ways, if we need to, to improve our laws but at the end of the day, I don’t know that it’s really about changing the laws as much as it is making sure we are zealously enforcing the laws we have on the books”, he said.

Last year, Democrats and Republicans came together to pass the law giving a lifetime gun ban for the worst abusers and an automatic three- or 10-year ban in other serious cases.

Locally and nationally, the figures for domestic violence deaths are undercounted because not all departments voluntarily report the information, and it does not include children and other bystanders who were killed, according to the AP. The Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence gives the state a D- and ranks its gun laws 23rd in the nation in terms of toughness. More than 80 percent of those killed were women.

SC lawmakers passed a law a year ago banning some people convicted of domestic violence from owning guns. Police can confiscate guns from suspects when they respond to domestic violence calls and judges have the power to order the search and seizure of weapons if suspects fail to surrender them. The states vary in terms of where abusers have to turn in their guns and how the state guarantees they do that, Oransky said.

He said he hopes for a committee hearing for the legislation this year.

States have been passing their own laws to match or exceed the federal prohibitions, delighting gun control advocates.

In Kentucky, similar efforts have failed in a state legislature where most members proudly display their ratings from the National Rifle Association.

Separate from that, legislators passed several domestic-violence related measures in 2015, including one authorizing development of a statewide program for electronic filing of requests for protective orders.

Some ineligible domestic abusers have turned to private sellers at gun shows or online who do not conduct background checks to illegally purchase guns. Thom Berry, a spokesman for the State Law Enforcement Division, said the agency had no immediately available statistics on the number of abusers who lost their weapons.

It marked a positive step forward in addressing domestic violence, but a formal system to ensure these people actually give up their firearms has not yet been implemented, said Jenn Oxborrow, executive director of the Utah Domestic Violence Coalition. The respondent would still have due process, Wittenberg said.