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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Elizabeth Richardson Vigdor, PhD, Sanford Institute of Public Policy, Duke University, Box 90312, Durham, NC 27708, 919-613-9264, elizabeth.vigdor@duke.edu and James A. Mercy, PhD, Division of Violence Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control, Mail Stop K-60, 4770 Buford Hwy NE, Atlanta, GA 30341.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of laws restricting access to firearms by domestic abusers on intimate partner homicides (IPHs). Methods: We evaluate the effect of laws that restrict access to firearms by individuals who are subject to a restraining order; restrict access to firearms by individuals who have been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor; or allow law enforcement officers to confiscate firearms at a domestic violence scene. We use panel data with fixed effects to exploit state variation in timing. Outcomes are the rates of total IPHs, female IPHs, total firearm IPHs and female firearm IPHs. Results: Passing a restraining order law lowers IPH rates in a state by 8% for total and female IPHs, 9% for firearm IPHs, and 10% for female firearm IPHs. This is an average of 2.9 fewer IPHs (2.0 of which are female) and 2.0 fewer firearm IPHs (1.6 of which are female) each year that a state has this law in effect. The effect of the restraining order laws is confined to states prohibiting the purchase of firearms and those with the ability to check whether someone is under a restraining order. We find no effect from the domestic violence misdemeanor or confiscation laws. Conclusions: Laws restricting access to firearms by individuals subject to a restraining order reduce IPH rates. However, policy makers need to consider that certain characteristics of the restraining order laws – such as explicitly prohibiting purchase rather than only restricting possession - impact their effectiveness.

Learning Objectives:

• To understand whether current laws restricting domestic violence are effective
• To understand what characteristics contribute to the effectiveness of these laws

Keywords: Firearms, Domestic Violence

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation