Texas Struggles to Collect Guns From Abusers, Violent Offenders
Despite laws that are meant to prevent certain people who present a danger to others from possessing guns, Texas’ criminal justice system largely lacks set programs for people to surrender firearms to law enforcement, according to The Texas Tribune
Landwebs
Despite laws that are meant to prevent certain people who present a danger to others from possessing guns, Texas’ criminal justice system largely lacks set programs for people to surrender firearms to law enforcement, a problem advocates and agency officials blame on a lack of resources to build out firearm transfer programs across the state, William Melhado reports for the Texas Tribune.
The transfer programs, already provided for by law, are one way for the pro-gun state to protect victims and get guns out of the hands of potentially dangerous people without fighting for big legislative changes like red flag laws or increased gun control. But Texas, the second largest state in the U.S., only has ten transfer programs spread across its 254 counties, and even existing programs struggle to bridge the necessary inter-agency cooperation with courts and services to make measures like this work, leaving domestic violence survivors at greater risk of fatal violence.
