It’s time NM legislators act on gun safety

80 percent of New Mexicans support criminal background checks

As a life-long resident of New Mexico, I was raised in Albuquerque around guns used for hunting and sport, and many of my family members are gun owners.

My husband grew up in Santa Fe where he spent many fall seasons hunting with his father for winter’s venison and elk meat. Guns are kept and stored in our home. We support the right to bear arms.

But we also recognize that with that right comes responsibility.

That’s where my support for stronger gun laws comes in – something we’re lacking here in New Mexico. I joined the local New Mexico chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and have decided it was my time to use my voice when it comes to gun violence prevention.

This issue is something I’ve talked to my friends about – gun owners and non-gun owners alike – who all believe in the same thing. And I came to a simple conclusion – the issue of supporting background checks was something we can all come together on. It’s something that goes hand-in-hand with our Second Amendment rights. Together, we can use our voices to support common-sense gun laws, but we need our very own elected leaders to do the same thing.

The toll of gun violence on our state is just not acceptable. In the last 10 years, nearly 1,000 New Mexicans have been shot and killed. Over 2,000 more committed suicide with a firearm — that’s nearly double the national average.

As members of this community, that is not something we can accept.

There are simple solutions we can put in place – like requiring a criminal background check on all gun sales – that will help reduce the gun violence we see in our state and save lives. Currently, felons, domestic abusers and other dangerous people are able to buy guns from unlicensed sellers in New Mexico — including strangers they meet online and at gun shows — with no background check, no questions asked.

This loophole matters. In states that close the loophole and require background checks on all handgun sales, there are 46 percent fewer women shot to death by intimate partners, 48 percent fewer law enforcement officers shot to death with handguns, and 48 percent less gun trafficking in their cities.

I’m emboldened by the recent progress in New Mexico at the local level. Just this week and also earlier this summer, we’ve seen city council members pass resolutions urging the state Legislature to close the background check loophole by passing a law that would require criminal background checks on all gun sales. This month it was Santa Fe, earlier this summer Las Cruces. These elected officials are doing this because they stand on the side of public safety, because they want to see a safer New Mexico.

My family knows exactly what it’s like to go through a background check – it’s a simple, 90-second process. A background check policy also receives widespread support from New Mexicans. In fact, 80 percent of New Mexico residents – including 79 percent of New Mexico gun owners – support requiring criminal background checks for all gun sales.

Next legislative session, our leaders have the opportunity to act on legislation that would close the loophole in our background check law and undoubtedly save lives. It’s time our state legislators follow the lead of their city council colleagues in Santa Fe and Las Cruces to support common-sense measures that will keep guns out of dangerous hands.

At the end of the day, New Mexicans want to live without fear of having a life senselessly taken by gun violence.

As election day draws nearer, and we all make our decisions about who to send to Santa Fe next legislative session, find out where your representatives stand on this issue. And if they don’t stand on the side of public safety, vote for a legislator who will. The safety of our families and communities depends on it.