Title: Batterers’ Use of Guns to Threaten Intimate Partners

Publication Date: December 2005

What does it say?

This study looks at gun ownership among batterers enrolled in Massachusetts batterer intervention programs and their self-reported use of guns to threaten intimate partners.

Gun ownership was strongly associated with using a gun to threaten an intimate. It was found that: “Recent gun owners were 7.8 times more likely than non-gun-owners to have threatened their partners with guns.”

There were four main ways which batterers reported using a gun to threaten intimate partners: 1) threatening to shoot them; 2) cleaning, holding, or loading a gun during an argument; 3) threatening to shoot a pet or person the victim cared about; and 4) shooting a gun during an argument with a victim.

The researchers suggest that: “The fact that gun owners and non-gun-owners were equally likely to use knives may indicate that gun owners are not inherently more violent than those without guns, but that gun availability makes it easier for batterers to threaten their partners.”

The study highlights several weaknesses in federal law relating to domestic violence and guns. Federal law does not make it mandatory for police or court officers to find out if convicted batterers possess guns or to confiscate them. In order to confiscate guns from convicted batterers courts must be authorized by state-level law. Under federal laws it is a crime for batterers to possess guns, however, there is nothing that prohibits batterers from owning firearms while they are subject to restraining orders and giving them to someone else to hold on to.

In addition, the study identifies weaknesses that hamper fully informed background checks. Firstly, background checks don’t always identify domestic violence convictions due to misclassification, problems with definition and incomplete or unclear records. Secondly, background checks are not required for all sales, for example at gun shows or other private sales.

The study concludes that: “Legal restrictions that prohibit batterers from owning and possessing firearms should be enforced consistently.”

How can I use it?

Restricting abusers’ access to guns is an effective way of helping to prevent domestic violence and the homicide of intimate partners in abusive relationships. Background checks should be required for all gun sales and record keeping needs to be improved in order to strengthen the accuracy of checks.

Citation

Rothman, Emily F; David Hemenway; Matthew Miller and Deb Azrael., “Batterers’ Use of Guns to Threaten Intimate Partners,” Journal of the American Medical Women’s Association, 60(1) (2005): 62-68

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