Connecting the Dots: Stalking and Future Gun Violence

[Debby Tucker]

 

Convicted stalkers should not have easy access to guns. Problems viewing this email? View it in your web browser. Stalking as a Risk Factor for Future Gun Violence By Chelsea Parsons In the wake of a high-profile mass shooting, there is often a collective instinct to try to ferret out something from the shooter’s past that should have served as a warning—some sign that should have alerted family, friends, or law enforcement to the potential risk posed by this person and, in turn, caused someone to intervene. As with the Capital Gazette shooting in Annapolis, Maryland, these post hoc reviews increasingly reveal one commonality in many shooters’ pasts: violent misogyny or abuse of women. The link between domestic violence and gun violence is by now well-established. And one particular type of abusive behavior toward women serves as a significant risk factor for future violence: stalking. But while stalkers and domestic abusers convicted of felonies are prohibited from purchasing guns under federal law, new CAP data reveals that a worrying number of stalking cases are tried at the misdemeanor level, thus allowing thousands of dangerous individuals to purchase guns and potentially continue a deadly cycle of abuse. Policymakers need to take this risk seriously and do what is necessary to ensure that convicted stalkers cannot slip through cracks in the law and have continued easy access to guns. Read more » See Also: How to Reduce Gun Violence in America: Disarm All Domestic Abusers FOLLOW US ON: | Privacy Policy | Center for American Progress | 1333 H Street NW, 10th Floor | Washington, D.C. 20005

 

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Debby Tucker, dtu...@ncdsv.org     Follow us on Twitter!  Follow us on Facebook!