The American woman has been physically abused by her partner one out of three times. Four and a half million women have been threatened with a firearm, and one million have been shot at. When a firearm is involved, the potential for homicide increases by 500%.
Kelly McBride, executive director of DVN, said she is not looking for new laws to be created; she is just looking for the laws in existence to be enforced while closing up loopholes.
She is specifically referring to gun laws. Currently, only married or divorced individuals are able to request that an abuser’s guns be removed. This presents challenges for victims who have never been married.
Another issue is the monitoring of gun removals. The DVN urges law enforcement to get more involved and not leave it up to the current honor system, trusting individuals to turn in their guns when asked.
In September 2018, after conducting an audit of 47 Indiana domestic violence programs, the Indiana Coalition against Domestic Violence found more than 2,000 people served, more than 600 hotline calls answered, and more than 200 requests for help denied. The number of COVID-19 cases has grown for the past several months since the epidemic began.
In light of the fact that bail is too low for most domestic violence victims, S. Sen. Michael Crider, R-Greenfield, says they are separated from their abusers when money bail is posted.
“[Victims] call the police, their spouse gets arrested, but then they are back home within a few minutes, and they are even angrier when they get home than they were when the police took them away,” he said.
For years, Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary, has been working to get a law passed that prevents people who have been convicted of domestic abuse from carrying firearms. The Republican supermajority, however, prevents bills pertaining to gun control from ever being read.
In emotionally charged situations, especially around loved ones, he is worried about the abuser’s inability to make decisions. This is especially dangerous when firearms are involved.
“The most emotional situation is when you are involved with people you love and people you interact with on a continuous basis,” he said.