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 Judiciary Committee for advancing House Bill 2013, legislation that would help keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers. The bill passed with strong bipartisan support.
Under current Oregon law, domestic abusers and convicted stalkers are prohibited from having guns, but the law does not require them to turn in guns they 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.
“Today’s vote is a win for public safety in Oregon,” said Doreen Dodgen-Magee, whose sister-in-law, Laura, and three nieces, Sarah, Rachel and April, were shot and killed by Laura’s husband and their father in September 1995. “No family should have to experience the pain my family endured. I know all too well that guns and domestic violence are truly a deadly combination. We’re proud of the gun sense champions who have stepped up to protect Oregon families, and we urge the full House to follow suit for the sake of our families and communities.”