Domestic Violence and Senator Doug Berger

2009 has yet to draw to a close, but one still has to scroll the mouse a while to read the full list of homicide victims names on the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s website. There are almost 60 names as of October, all killed by intimate partners, family members, and some bystanders who just got caught in the fray. Of those, 47 were felled by guns. The list does not include names of perpetrators who committed suicide following their crime, but if it did, the grand total would be 58.

While guns in an objective sense are neither good nor evil, there are certain instances in which they can turn a bad situation into a tragedy. As a nod to Domestic Violence Awareness Month, it’s crucial to understand the danger they pose in relationships between current and former intimate partners where one person uses emotional and physical violence to gain power and control over the other person - hence the necessity of removing firearms from the environment. A UNC-Chapel Hill study discovered that 80 percent of females living with intimate partners reported that any guns in the household were owned solely by their husbands or boyfriends. Because the majority of domestic violence is committed by men against women, this creates cause for concern.

Even more concerning are the movements proposed to repeal federal laws which currently allow the removal of guns from the hands of those convicted of domestic assault. NC Senator Doug Berger (D) also recently introduced to repeal the requirement for a sheriff’s permit needed for a handgun. Considering that handguns were responsible for 265 of North Carolina’s 597 total murders in 2008 (according to the NC State Bureau of Investigation), this move would pose a realistic threat to individuals in abusive relationships. The Violence Policy Center estimates that guns are used in about 50 percent of domestic homicides nationally.

Domestic violence is not a private household matter, nor is it merely a community issue. It is a public health concern and an epidemic wherein all factors must be recognized in order to prevent it, and hence the role of guns cannot be discounted or ignored. Every issue contributing to domestic violence deserves full consideration, and this month especially is a time to bring those issues to light- and to pay homage to the lives lost as a result of them.