For example, there was a lot of discussion about how Protection from Abuse orders are served, enforced, along with when and how and law enforcement can confiscate weapons from those who are the subjects of them.
Some of the recommendations by panelists were: Creating a registry of people who had their guns confiscated after a protection from abuse order; partnering with judges to hold status hearings after a protection from abuse order is issued to be sure it is being implemented successfully; and making sure that the paper protection from abuse order specifically mentions firearms.
Johnson said he would work on these recommendations at the city level.
Police: Domestic violence fueling rising gun deaths among women in Philadelphia in 2021
“We are advocating for policies that are survivor-centric,” said Ruth Glenn, president and CEO of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
According to Fran Healy, special adviser to the Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw, between 2017 and 2021, domestic assaults increased by 18% in the city, but domestic assaults with a gun increased by 100% in the same time period.
“Men have grown up in violent families and neighborhoods and have seen trauma,” said Teresa White-Walston, acting co-executive director, WOAR Philadelphia Center Against Sexual Violence. “They are acting out and playing out the same behavior.”
The Philadelphia Police Department defines “domestic disputes” as being between any family members, roommates or intimate partners, which is in line with the way national law enforcement defines such incidents.
According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, domestic violence is a pattern of behaviors used by an intimate partner to maintain power and control over another partner. But advocates said it can also be stalking, unwanted texts or social media bullying.
Philly DA’s crime-tracking system shows LGBTQ domestic violence remains a major issue
In addition, domestic violence affects people regardless of social economic status, age, gender, race or ethnicity. Over a lifetime, one in five women and one in seven men, nationally report some suffering from some form of physical violence from an intimate partner. And about two in five transgender people have reported domestic violence.
When firearms are involved in domestic violence disputes, it can quickly turn lethal, several panelists said, for victims, perpetrators, bystanders, and even first responders.
During the pandemic, there was an increase of incidents of domestic violence across the nation, a result of stay-at-home orders related to COVID-19, according to analysis of FBI statistics by Everytown for Gun Safety. The study showed that homicides involving intimate partners rose by 25% nationwide in 2020, compared with the previous year.
The panelists included Healy; Frank Vanore, PPD chief inspector; Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal; Ruth Glenn, president and CEO of National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Spencer Cantrell, director of federal affairs, Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence; Susan B. Sorenson, professor at the University of Pennsylvania; Joanna Otero-Cruz, executive director, Women Against Abuse; White-Walston, acting co-executive director, WOAR; Shakina Rush, founder of She Is Us, Inc. and Christine Joy Brunson, executive director of the Purple House Project.
Philly names its first victims’ advocate: Adara Combs’ family was touched by gun violence
On March 9, the U.S. House passed the re-authorization of the Violence Against Women Act, one of President Biden’s priorities. It expired in 2019, in a government spending bill. But the bill contains so-called “boyfriend loophole,” which the Republicans advocated for. It would have prohibit intimate partners, not just spouses, from owning firearms after being convicted of domestic violence.
Johnson said he would speak to the Philadelphia congressional delegation about it.
Stephen Williams is a reporter for the Philadelphia Tribune, where this story first appeared.
