SALEM, Ore. – The Oregon chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, today applauded the Oregon House for passing House Bill 2013, legislation that would help keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers. The bill passed out of the House with strong bipartisan support.
“We must do everything we can to protect Oregon women and families,” said Hope Wyss, a member of the Everytown Survivor Network and a volunteer with the Oregon chapter of Moms Demand Action. “As a survivor of domestic violence, I know all too well what it’s like to have your life threatened with a gun, and I know that guns and domestic violence are a terrifying and often deadly combination. I’m proud that the House has taken this crucial step for public safety in Oregon, and I urge the Senate to follow suit and swiftly pass this common-sense legislation.”
Under current Oregon law, domestic abusers and convicted stalkers are prohibited from having guns, but the law does not require them to turn in any guns they may already own. This means that many abusers and stalkers, who are legally prohibited from possessing firearms, come home to guns they already own when returning home from court or after completing short sentences.
HB 2013 would protect families in Oregon by requiring convicted domestic abusers, abusers subject to final orders of protection and convicted stalkers to turn in their guns immediately. Removing guns from abusers and stalkers is crucial, as access to a gun in a domestic violence situation makes it five times more likely that a woman will be killed, and according to the Oregon Violent Death Reporting System, 62 percent of intimate partner homicide victims in Oregon were killed with a firearm between 2011-2015.