In Focus: Initiative 594 will cut crime, save lives

In 2012, my mother became one of far too many women who fall victim to domestic violence when she was shot by her husband. Thankfully she survived her attack, but many women are not as lucky. Domestic violence can easily become fatal when abusers have easy access to guns, and that is the reality my family lives with to this day. That’s why I urge you to join me this November in voting for Initiative 594, which will help keep guns out of dangerous hands, reduce crime, and save lives.Currently, people buying guns at places like Cabela’s, or the nearly 1,100 other licensed dealers in Washington, are subject to background checks. These simple and easy checks are effective at keeping guns out of the hands of convicted felons, domestic abusers and the seriously mentally ill. FBI data shows that, since 1998, the federal background check system has blocked over 40,000 gun sales to prohibited purchasers in Washington, including over 24,000 felons and 6,000 domestic abusers.But there is a massive loophole in our law that makes it easy for these same individuals to evade a background check and obtain a gun. Because background checks are not required for sales by unlicensed sellers, criminals and other dangerous people can simply go online or to a gun show, where they can buy a gun from a stranger, no questions asked. Initiative 594 closes this loophole using the same system of background checks that has been effective in Washington for decades. It adds consistency and clarity to our state’s laws by making sure everyone buying a gun goes through the same background check, no matter where they buy the gun or who they buy it from. This will make it more difficult for criminals and domestic abusers to evade a background check and obtain guns. And the vast majority of gun owners and buyers will simply use the same licensed dealers to conduct the background check that they’ve likely been using for years. No one measure can stop all incidents of gun violence. But we know that background checks are effective at keeping guns out of dangerous hands. In states with background checks on all handgun sales, 38 percent fewer women were shot to death by intimate partners. As a domestic violence advocate, I know that these figures are more than statistics; they represent real women in abusive relationships who may well be kept from harm by a simple and easy background check. In states like Colorado and Pennsylvania, laws similar to Initiative 594 are in place right now and are helping to keep guns out of dangerous hands while responsible gun owners continue to exercise their Second Amendment rights, just as they did before. That;s why the most recent independent, nonpartisan Elway Poll indicated that 70 percent of Washington voters support Initiative 594. The initiative is backed by a coalition of survivors, law enforcement officers, faith leaders, gun owners, hunters, and NRA members who have come together to pass this common-sense measure. Hundreds of thousands of Washingtonians from every county in our State signed the petition to put 594 on the ballot, for the simple reason that it will reduce gun violence while respecting our Second Amendment rights.The other measure on this year’s ballot, Initiative 591, is very different — and very dangerous. Although it’s frequently described as simply a counter-initiative to 594, it’s actually much worse. Initiative 591 would roll back the existing system of background checks in Washington — the system that is currently in place and that has proven critical to ensuring domestic abusers and the seriously mentally ill can’t obtain a firearm. The Seattle Times was absolutely right when they called Initiative 591 a “wholly inappropriate, unnecessary and potentially a reckless retreat.” I can’t imagine why anyone would want to undermine a tool that’s so effective at keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers.I urge you to join me in voting “No” on Initiative 591 — and in voting “Yes” on Initiative 594 this November so that we can reduce crime and save lives.w Rory Graves is a domestic violence advocate and mother. Her own mother, a Tri-Cities resident, was shot and wounded by her husband in a domestic violence incident. In addition to supporting Initiative 594, Rory advocated for House Bill 1840 (2014), which helps protect women from domestic abusers.

This story was originally published August 29, 2014 at 5:27 PM with the headline "In Focus: Initiative 594 will cut crime, save lives."