New York just passed a law requiring domestic abusers to turn over all of their guns to the state

In a move toward stricter gun control laws, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo released a statement on Saturday, March 31st to announce a new state law. This New York gun law states that people convicted of domestic abuse in New York will now have to turn over all of their firearms.

After the Sandy Hook school shooting in 2012, New York State passed a law prohibiting domestic abusers from owning pistols and revolvers. (The law also applied to some misdemeanors). This new legislation amends that law, making sure that domestic abusers give up all of the guns they may own. The changes also included adding a list of serious misdemeanors.

New York already has some of the strictest gun control laws in the country, and this is just one more. “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,” Governor Cuomo said in a statement. “This legislation builds on our gun laws — already the strongest in the nation — to make New York safer and stronger.”

“Half of the women who are murdered in this country are murdered by an intimate partner,” Governor Cuomo told CNN, citing a statistic taken from a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There is plenty of evidence that points to the fact that many mass shooters have a history of violence against women. Cuomo also said that firearms were used in 35 domestic killings in the state in 2016.

The new New York gun law also prevents someone from getting or renewing a license for a gun if the person trying to purchase one has an arrest warrant for certain alleged crimes.

Users sounded off on their opinions about the new law on Twitter. Some were happy about the decision.

Others were not.

And some felt that the New York gun law still isn’t enough.

Let’s see if any other states follow New York’s lead.