Gov. Martinez chooses to side with domestic abusers
During the regular legislative session, Gov. Susana Martinez was presented with a clear choice: Defend domestic abusers or protect victims of domestic violence. In a stunning betrayal of New Mexican women, she chose to side with abusers by vetoing Senate Bill 259 — a bill that would have required abusers subject to certain types of domestic violence protective orders to surrender guns and would have prohibited purchase and possession of guns for the duration of the order.
The bill aimed to protect New Mexican women given the well-documented link between guns and domestic violence deaths. More than half of all women murdered in the United States are killed by an intimate partner with a gun, and the chance of being murdered by an abusive partner increases fivefold if there is a gun in the home. Removing guns from domestic abusers reduces the likelihood that domestic violence will turn deadly.
Due in large part to the tireless efforts of New Mexicans to Prevent Gun Violence, especially co-president Miranda Viscoli, the bill passed both the House and Senate with bipartisan support and was considered a commonsense measure by legislators on both sides of the aisle. After all, who prioritizes abusers’ guns over the lives of abused women? Apparently, Gov. Martinez does.
In addition to implicitly denying the relationship between guns and domestic violence, the governor’s reasoning for the veto illustrates a stunning lack of leadership and compassion. In a statement released to legislators, Martinez states that domestic abuse incidents are “complex” and “very difficult and emotional for everyone involved.”
This is the language of apologists. This is the language abusers use to defend their actions. This is the language that conditions women to blame themselves and stay in abusive relationships, excusing an abusive partner’s actions as an “emotional outburst” or a reaction to a “complex situation.” Relationship dynamics may be complex, but when a woman is being physically and/ or emotionally abused, the blame falls squarely on one person: the abuser. By dismissing domestic violence as too “complex” and “difficult” to address, Gov. Martinez minimizes abuse, dodges her responsibility to protect her constituents and ensures victims of domestic violence will continue to live in fear of armed abusers.
Gov. Martinez further justifies her veto by stating “… judges already have the power to prohibit individuals that are subject to a civil restraining order from possessing a firearm. …” It is true that judges issuing domestic violence protective orders can order the removal of firearms and prohibit purchase of guns for the duration of the order. However, doing so is not mandatory, and judges are either hesitant to invoke this provision or unaware the option exists, as firearm prohibition is never explicitly mentioned under current law.
In other words, an abused woman’s safety is at the discretion of a judge. SB 259 would have established mandatory protections for victims of domestic violence in New Mexico. There is no reason a victim of domestic violence should be required to live in fear. There is no reason an abuser should be able to access deadly weapons when a protective order is in effect.
Gov. Martinez seems to think that deciding whether to sign this lifesaving bill was a “difficult” and “complex” decision. But this decision was nowhere near as difficult as the decisions that abused women must make every day: whether to leave an abusive partner; how to best protect herself and her children; whether to seek help from advocates, law enforcement or the court. Restricting abusers’ access to firearms would have helped protect the women who face these decisions. The choice to sign this bill should have been easy.