The Brady Bill and Domestic Violence Protection Orders: Firearm Removal Rates in Arizona

• In Event: Roundtable: Policies, Practices, and Prevention

Abstract

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 35.6% of American women and 28.5% of American men will be victimized by an intimate partner during their lifetime (Black et al, 2011). Civil protection orders offer domestic violence victims a means of protection from the threat of bodily harm. An important component of protection orders is the ability to have firearms removed from an abuser’s possession. At the federal level, judges can enforce the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, which prohibits respondents (those who are subject to court orders which restrain an individual from threatening, harassing or stalking an intimate partner or partner’s child) or defendants who have been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor from owning firearms. Using data obtained from 1,400 protection order filings in seven municipal courts in Arizona in 2015, this paper will analyze (1) the percentage of filings which meet the federal requirements for Brady to apply, (2) the rate at which victims ask for firearms to be removed, (3) the percentage of cases where firearm removal is granted, and (4) the characteristics of cases that are associated with firearm removal. The results are discussed in the context of Arizona’s gun culture and firearm legislation.

Authors

• Mikaela Ann Wallin, Arizona State University

• Alesha Durfee, Arizona State University