Attorney General Phil Weiser: Laws banning domestic abusers from having guns are constitutional and will remain so

June 21, 2024—Attorney General Phil Weiser released the following statement regarding today’s U.S. Supreme Court opinion upholding gun safety laws that protect domestic violence victims:

“The Supreme Court today upheld federal and state laws, including Colorado’s law, that bar people subject to domestic violence restraining orders from possessing firearms. The tragic fact we know from our work tracking domestic violence fatalities in the state is that most domestic violence-related murders involve firearms. An abuser is five times more likely to murder their intimate partner if a firearm is in the home. Furthermore, law enforcement, children, family, and friends also face harm in domestic violence-related incidents when an abuser has a gun.

“It’s obvious that these gun safety laws make a difference and save lives. Today’s opinion from the court makes it clear that laws keeping domestic violence abusers from having guns are constitutional and will remain so.”

Colorado was part of a coalition of states that filed a court brief in United States v. Rahimi in support of laws protecting domestic violence victims from gun violence.

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