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Description

The Dallas County Gun Surrender Program (“the program”) provides domestic violence offenders who are legally barred from possessing firearms a safe and secure way to surrender any guns they own. Existing state and federal laws prohibit offenders from possessing firearms for a statutorily-specified period of time; offenders who violate the law by possessing guns also expose themselves to criminal penalties. However, prior to the launch of the Program, offenders in Dallas County had few ways to comply with these laws or were unaware that they were required to surrender their firearms. As a result, many offenders continued to possess firearms illegally. This report unequivocally concludes that the Program is a vital part of county-wide efforts to protect domestic violence survivors from gun violence. However, the Program is dramatically underutilized. Only a handful of judges refer guns to the Program. Key stakeholders are not collaborating to expand the Program’s operation or to hold noncompliant offenders accountable. The Program is struggling to develop an independent identity apart from the misdemeanor family violence courts, and is hampered by insufficient communication between the many law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, city attorneys, and judges in the county who are tasked with protecting survivors from abuse.

Publication Date

Spring 2017

Publisher

Judge Elmo B. Hunter Legal Center for Victims of Crimes Against Women

Disciplines

Family Law | Law

Taking Aim at Family Violence: A Report on the Dallas County Gun Surrender Program

Included in

Family Law Commons

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