The first federal gun safety legislation to be passed in a generation was passed by the U.S. Congress on Friday. The bill was bipartisan.
The “boyfriend loophole,” which permits some people with a history of domestic violence to still purchase firearms, is one of the elements of the proposed law, which is now pending President Biden’s approval.
The relationship between intimate partner violence, homicide, and gun restrictions is a topic of April Zeoli’s study at Michigan State University. She outlines the implications of the move and the reasons it will save lives.
The boyfriend loophole: what is it? Intimate partner relationships are only those in which two persons are or were married, reside or lived together as a couple, or had a child together, according to current federal law.
The majority of those who were dating is not included in this criteria.
As a result, federal regulations that forbid people with domestic violence convictions or those who are subject to domestic violence restraining orders from purchasing or owning firearms do not apply to dating partners. The “boyfriend loophole” is what this is all about.
For example, if two domestic abusers have both used serious physical force against their partners, but only one of them is married to that person and the other is not, then only the married domestic abuser may be restricted from possessing a firearm.
What do the numbers indicate? Since around 2015, there has been a rise in intimate partner homicides, which is nearly exclusively attributable to homicides using firearms. Guns are the most frequently utilised weapon in intimate relationship homicides, after all.
In contrast, the rates of non-gun intimate partner homicide have remained largely constant during that time.
According to research, the likelihood that a violent male partner will murder the female partner increases fivefold when he has access to a gun. We also know that intimate relationship violence including guns might cause more PTS symptoms than intimate partner violence without guns since guns are used to force, intimidate, and threaten intimate partners.
A significant public health danger exists as a result of the high incidence of intimate partner murders perpetrated with firearms and the finding in a nationally representative survey that 3.4% of victims of domestic violence had encountered non-fatal gun use by their abusers.
Why is the “boyfriend loophole” being discussed right now? Every few years, the issue of expanding the ban on domestic violence firearms to romantic partners comes up.
This time, the reason is that Congress recently passed new gun safety legislation, which, once it is signed into law, would close or at least narrow the loophole.
The measure now states that “those who have or have had a continuing connection of a romantic or intimate kind” are also subject to the ban.
There are a few things to keep in mind here. First, the recent mass shooting incidents and the desire to stop future massacres served as the impetus for passing new gun safety legislation.
We are aware that many mass shootings result in the deaths of intimate partners or family members, and that some of the shooters have prior convictions for domestic violence.
However, the majority of shootings in the United States are not mass shootings. The killing of an intimate partner occurs more frequently.
My research demonstrates that there is a decrease in intimate partner homicide when states extend weapon restrictions put on people under domestic violence restraining orders to cover dating partners.
The law does not exactly do this, though. The legislation would only close the gap for people found guilty of misdemeanour domestic violence offences. Restraining order statutes are not covered by it.
What is the state of the situation? Some states, like Minnesota and West Virginia, have already made dating partners subject to handgun prohibitions for misdemeanour domestic abuse. Tennessee is one of the states that hasn’t.
Less than half of the states have made dating partners subject to the misdemeanour domestic violence handgun ban.
Due to this, your ability to avoid being shot by a violent dating partner now depends on the state in which you reside.
Federal legislation would contribute to the development of a more uniform national picture about violent dating partners.
What kind of national impact will closing the loophole have? According to my study, there have been fewer intimate partner homicides involving weapons since the federal firearm ban was implemented for those convicted of domestic violence misdemeanour offences.
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So, it stands to reason that restricting access to firearms for a larger group of risky intimate partners will likely result in a further decline in firearm homicides in violent relationships.
According to the same logic, it would likely save lives to close the boyfriend loophole that prevents those under domestic violence restraining orders from being prohibited from possessing firearms.
