On Saturday, New York passed a law requiring that domestic abusers must turn over all guns to the state, not just handguns, as previously stipulated.
The provision sailed through the state assembly and Senate before being signed by Governor Andrew Cuomo.
“New York is once again leading the way to prevent gun violence, and with this common sense reform, break the inextricable link between gun violence and domestic violence,” the governor told CNN.
He cited a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which found that “intimate partner violence” accounted for more than half of all killings of women in which the circumstances are known.
New York already has some of the strictest gun laws in the nation, and one of the lowest rates of gun violence. It was one of the few states to push through substantial changes after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in 2012, including an expansion of its assault-weapons ban. While progressives have many legitimate gripes about Cuomo, who is being challenged by Cynthia Nixon in a primary, gun reform is one area in which he has largely proven his liberal bona fides.
Small-bore though it may be, the New York law is part of a larger trend since the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in February. In the aftermath of that tragedy, traditionally gun-friendly Florida passed a bill that raised the age to buy firearms to 21, among other restrictions. And Vermont, also known for its lax gun laws, is on the brink of passing a sweeping package of reforms.
