Laws that prohibit persons under a domestic violence restraining order from purchasing or possessing a firearm are a primary way to keep guns out of the hands of batterers. In July 2005, the California Attorney General's Task Force on the Local Criminal Justice Response to Domestic Violence issued a report called Keeping the Promise: Victim Safety and Batterer Accountability. The report focused, in part, on the extent to which California's domestic violence restraining order system succeeds in disarming batterers. Restraining orders are the principal means by which the criminal justice system can accomplish this objective. The Task Force found that criminal justice agencies and the courts performed poorly in this area. The report strongly recommended that a more strategic, collaborative use of laws already on the books could significantly improve performance, without much additional expense. What follows is a summary of those finding and recommendations.
AB 1288 (Chu) (Amended Penal Code § 11106[d] to allow law enforcement to disclose batterers' firearms ownership to domestic violence victims) (2005).
2.
Adams, S., and A. Powell1995. The tragedies of domestic violence: A qualitative analysis of civil restraining orders in Massachusetts. Boston: Office of the Commissioner of Probation: Massachusetts Trial Court.
3.
Americans for Gun Safety Foundation. 2002. Broken records: How America's faulty background check system allows criminals to get guns. http://www.agsfoundation.com/press_011102.htm (accessed November 4, 2005).
4.
Attorney General's Task Force. 2005. Keeping the promise: Victim safety and batterer accountability. Report from the Attorney General's Task Force on Local Criminal Justice Response to Domestic Violence. http://www.safestate.org/documents/dv_report_ag.pdf (accessed November 3, 2005).
5.
Berk, R. A., Y. He, and S. B. Sorenson. 2005. Developing a practical forecasting screener for domestic violence incidents for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Evaluation Review29:358-383.
6.
Buzawa, E., G. T. Hotaling, and A. Klein. 1998. The response to domestic violence in a model court: Some initial findings and implications. Behavioral Sciences and the Law16:185-206.
7.
Buzawa, E., G. T. Hotaling, A. Klein, and J. Byrne. 1999. Response to domestic violence in a pro-active court setting. U.S. Department of Justice. http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/181427.pdf (accessed November 3, 2005).
8.
California Family Code § 242 (Orders without notice) (2006).
9.
California Family Code § 6250(a) (Ground for issuing emergency protective orders) (2006).
10.
California Family Code § 6252 (Inclusion of other orders) (2006).
11.
California Family Code § 6256 (Expiration of orders) (2006).
12.
California Family Code § 6271 (Duties of officer who requested order) (2006).
13.
California Family Code § 6300 (Issuance of order upon affidavit) (2006).
14.
California Family Code § 6320 (Ex parte order enjoining contact) (2006).
15.
California Family Code § 6326 (Issuance or denial on date application submitted) (2006).
16.
California Family Code § 6327 (Ex parte orders) (2006).
17.
California Family Code § 6345(a) (Duration of orders after notice and hearing) (2006).
18.
California Family Code § 6380(a) (Domestic Violence Restraining Order System) (2006).
19.
California Family Code § 6380(a)(1) (Domestic Violence Restraining Order System) (2006).
20.
California Family Code § 6380(a)(2) (Domestic Violence Restraining Order System) (2006).
21.
California Family Code § 6384(a) (Personal service of order not required) (2006).
22.
California Family Code § 6389(a) (Firearm ownership and relinquishment order) (2006).
23.
California Family Code § 6389(c) (Firearm ownership and relinquishment order) (2006).
24.
California Penal Code § 136.2 (Criminal protective orders) (2006).
25.
California Penal Code § 136.2(g) (Criminal protective orders) (2006).
26.
California Penal Code § 136.2(h) (Criminal protective orders) (2006).
27.
California Penal Code § 136.2(h)(2) (Criminal protective orders) (2006).
28.
California Penal Code § 136.2(i)(1) (Criminal protective orders) (2006).
29.
California Penal Code § 166(c)(1) (Contempt of court) (2006).
30.
California Penal Code § 166(c)(3) (Contempt of court) (2006).
31.
California Penal Code § 166(d)(1) (Contempt of court) (2006).
32.
California Penal Code § 273.6(a) (Violation of court order) (2006).
33.
California Penal Code § 273.6(g) (Violation of court order) (2006).
34.
California Penal Code § 836(c)(1) (Arrest with and without warrant) (2006).
35.
California Penal Code § 1203.097(a)(2) (Terms of probation for crime of domestic violence) (2006).
36.
California Penal Code § 12021(g) (Restrictions on firearms possession) (2006).
37.
Cochran, D., S. Adams, and P. O'Brien. 1998. From chaos to clarity in understanding domestic violence. Domestic Violence Report3:65-78.
38.
Saltzman, L. E., J. A. Mercy, P. W. O'Carroll, M. L. Rosenberg, and P. H. Rhodes. 1992. Weapon involvement and injury outcomes in family and intimate assaults. Journal of the American Medical Association267:3042-3047.
39.
SB 720 (Kuehl) (Amended Family Code § 6380[a] so that family courts are responsible for ensuring that their domestic violence restraining orders are entered into the statewide Domestic Violence Restraining Order System, just as criminal courts are responsible for their criminal protective orders) (2005).
40.
Sorenson, S.B., and H. Shen. 2005. Restraining orders in California: A look at statewide data. Violence against Women11:912-933.
41.
Sorenson, S. B., and D. J. Wiebe. 2004. Weapons in the lives of battered women. American Journal of Public Health94:1412-1417.
42.
U.S. Code, Title 18, § 922(g)(8) (Firearms, unlawful acts) (2006).
43.
U.S. Code, Title 18, § 924(a)(4) (Firearms, penalties) (2006).
