Gun violence worth fighting despite backlash: Column

Rita Smith | USATODAY

Following last week's recall elections of Senators John Morse and Angela Giron, pundits were quick to predict all kinds of political ramifications. What would a heavily-funded, successful retribution effort by the Washington gun lobby mean for the future of gun violence prevention? Or for lawmakers in purple states? Or the midterm elections? I can't pretend to know the political consequences. But what I do know is that the crucial laws that Colorado legislators courageously passed are still on the books. And if you care about keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers, you should be very thankful for that.

Here are the facts: Thirty-three Americans are murdered with guns every day, and yesterday's horrific mass shooting at the Navy Yard in Washington helped underscore the urgency of the situation. Women in the U.S. are 11 times more likely to be murdered with guns than women in other developed nations. And in domestic violence situations, the presence of a gun increases the risk of homicide for women by 500 percent.

Our lax federal gun laws help shape these horrible realities. But in the face of impassioned opposition from the NRA's Washington leadership, Senators Morse and Giron did the right thing and stood up for a constituency that too often fails to have a voice in the debate on sensible gun laws.

They helped pass several bills earlier this year, including a piece of common-sense legislation to keep guns away from violent domestic abusers. Under current federal law, convicted domestic violence abusers are barred from owning guns. Yet dangerous loopholes in our laws make it all too easy for these individuals to buy guns from private sellers online or at gun shows.

In Colorado, lawmakers did the right thing by closing these loopholes to keep guns away from dangerous individuals. Today any Coloradan that would like to buy a gun must undergo a background check. And because of Senate Bill 197, those with a history of domestic abuse must turn their guns in. In other words, the intentions of federal lawmakers to keep guns out of the wrong hands can finally be enforced in Colorado.

Needless to say, in a state still shaken by the tragic mass shootings in Columbine and Aurora, the legislation remains incredibly popular throughout all of Colorado. The gun lobby may have successfully cherry-picked two vulnerable legislators, but they lost the battle for public opinion.

Women's lives are clearly at stake here. In states that require background checks for private handgun purchases, 38 percent fewer women are shot to death by intimate partners. Specifically in Colorado,during the two months since these laws have been implemented, already 28 prohibited purchasers have been denied firearms after their background checks turned up red flags. We can't know how many lives have been saved, but we know all too well in Colorado that it only takes one gun reaching the wrong hands to shatter a life, a family, and a community.

I have been working on this issue with the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence in Colorado for 20 years. The people we work with face harrowing circumstances, often in fear for their lives. Throwing a firearm into the equation only escalates what SB 197's sponsor called "the lethal combination of guns and domestic violence."

Just nine months ago in Colorado, we saw how lethal that combination can be when Daniel Sanchez was released from prison for kidnapping his ex-girlfriend – and killed the same woman and two others only six hours later. Though Sanchez had a criminal history, he was able to obtain a gun in the brief time span between leaving prison and reaching the home of his ex-girlfriend's sister. Cases like these are not unique, and they illustrate the necessity for lawmakers to take serious action to keep domestic abusers away from guns.

Shortly after the results were announced Tuesday, Senator Giron said "I have not one iota of regret from what I voted on … we will win in the end, because we are on the right side." I applaud her courage, and I hope more lawmakers will take up the cause, because the fight needs to go on.

Rita Smith is executive director of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence and a Colorado native.

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