Dear Chairman Leahy, Ranking Member Grassley and Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

Congressional action has meant the difference between life and death for many women. The Violence Against Women Act protects millions of Americans every year. The Lautenberg Amendment alone has prevented more than 250,000 domestic abusers from purchasing a gun from a licensed gun dealer. But many of those who perpetrate violence against women are still allowed easy access to firearms. And the violence continues.

• Women are more than three-and-a-half times as likely to be killed by an intimate partner as men.

• A gun in a household with a history of domestic violence increases the risk that a woman will be killed there by 20 times, compared to households without guns.

• More than 1,000,000 women are stalked annually, and more than half are stalked by an intimate partner — with stalkers using guns to harm or threaten their victims in 1 out of 5 of those cases.

More action is needed – and soon. Women's lives are at stake. We know more about the dangerous connection between domestic abuse and guns than we ever have. Let’s leave no stone unturned when it comes to protecting women and their families.

On behalf of more than 500,000 members of Americans for Responsible Solutions, I strongly urge you to hold a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee to discuss ways to prevent gun violence against women.

Sincerely,

Gabby Giffords

http://americansforresponsiblesolutions.org/