Senate Gun Bill Allows Convicted Abusers to Get Their Gun Back After 5 Years
The bill has broad bipartisan support—in part because it doesn't fully close the "boyfriend loophole."
NewsPolitics

The Senate revealed a crucial piece of gun control legislation this week. Among the main provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is an effort to close the “boyfriend loophole,” which allows unmarried partners to hold onto their guns after they’ve been convicted of domestic violence. After years of activists’ campaigns to close the loophole, senators are finally set to do so—with a catch: After five years of good behavior, those convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor will get their guns back.
The bill comes on the heels of high-profile mass shootings at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York, which left 10 people dead in what has been described as a hate crime by federal prosecutors, and at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers were killed by a teenage gunman. The bill was co-written by Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.); Krysten Sinema (D- Ariz.), John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.). That the end of the “boyfriend loophole” will come with a loophole of its own is largely due to GOP senators unwillingness to limit firearm access.