GUN SAFETYWill Closing the “Boyfriend Loophole” in Gun Legislation Save lives? Here’s What the Research Says
If you have two domestic abusers who have both committed the same severe physical violence against their partners, but one of them is married to their intimate partner while the other isn’t, then only the domestic abuser who is married could be prohibited from having a gun. Among the provisions of the bipartisan gun safety bill passed by Congress, is one which closes the so-called “boyfriend loophole” which allows some people with a record of domestic violence to still buy firearms.
The U.S. Congress has passed a bipartisan gun safety bill, representing the first federal gun safety legislation to be passed in a generation.
The legislation, which will now be signed into law by President Joe Biden, is limited in scope. But among its provisions is the closing of the so-called “boyfriend loophole” which allows some people with a record of domestic violence to still buy firearms.
April Zeoli, at Michigan State University, researches the link between intimate partner violence, homicide and gun laws. She explains what the change means – and why it would save lives.
What is the boyfriend loophole?
Under current federal legislation, intimate partner relationships are defined only as those in which two people are or were married, live or lived together as a couple, or have a child together. People who were in a dating relationship are largely excluded from this definition.
As a result, dating partners are exempt from federal laws that prohibit those convicted of domestic violence misdemeanor crimes, or those who are under domestic violence restraining orders, from buying or possessing a firearm. This is what is referred to as the “boyfriend loophole”.
To put it another way, if you have two domestic abusers who have both committed the same severe physical violence against their partners, but one of them is married to their intimate partner while the other isn’t, then only the domestic abuser who is married could be prohibited from having a gun.
What does the data tell us about domestic violence and guns?
Intimate partner homicides have been rising since about 2015, and this increase is almost entirely due to intimate partner homicides committed with guns. Indeed, guns are the most common weapon used in intimate partner homicide. In contrast, non-gun intimate partner homicide levels have stayed roughly the same over that period.
Research suggests that when a violent male partner has access to a gun, the risk of murder to the female partner increases by fivefold. We also know that guns are used to coerce, intimidate, and threaten intimate partners, and that gun-involved intimate partner violence can result in more symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder than intimate partner violence that doesn’t involve guns. With a nationally representative survey suggesting that 3.4% of victims of domestic violence have experienced non-fatal gun use by their abusers – combined with the high numbers of intimate partner murders committed with guns – this constitutes a large public health threat.
