Let’s be honest, domestic violence is a legitimate problem. It’s ugly and I have no respect for anyone who abuses their partners. None whatsoever. Anyone who does that, regardless of whatever sex they are, is scum.

In Columbus, OH, they’re trying to address the problem of these domestic violence issues becoming something even worse. They’re trying to stop them from becoming murders.

To do that, they’re focusing on taking guns from those convicted of domestic violence.

A new project launching in Columbus aims to prevent domestic violence from turning deadly.

Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein launched a federal grant-assisted program Tuesday known as the Firearms Technical Assistance Project (FTAP).

Columbus is among six communities throughout the U.S. awarded with funding and guidance from the Department of Justice to help enforce domestic violence-related gun laws.

“We have sheriffs, police, prosecutors, victim advocates, the court system, all coming together in this room so we can figure out ways to improve community safety and all be on the same page, rowing in the same direction to protect victims and children,” Klein said.

In 2018, the Columbus City Council passed several ordinances preventing domestic abusers and other violent offenders from possessing firearms.

The law is what it is and I’m not really interested in debating what the law is regarding guns and those convicted of domestic violence.

However, I do feel it’s my duty to remind the good people of Columbus that homicides don’t just stop because there’s not a gun in the house. When you’re dealing with people who commit domestic violence, you’re usually dealing with people possessing a lot of rage. A man who beats his wife is just as capable of murdering her with his bare hands as he would be of shooting her.

You see, this is supposed to stop domestic violence from turning deadly, but it may just as easily make it impossible for a woman who has yet to leave her abusive husband to defend herself from him when things get really, really bad.

The truth is that domestic violence is a surprisingly complex issue. Women who are repeatedly victimized will often continue allowing themselves to be victimized. They’re in the house with the abuser, potentially even after a conviction. He simply promised he wouldn’t do it again and she believed him.

Only, he does.

Now, let’s say he doesn’t have a gun. Does that make her safe? Hardly. There’s a kitchen full of knives, pillows one can be smothered with, and his bare hands that are more than capable of choking the life out of her.

If you want to prevent domestic violence from becoming deadly, you have to look beyond whether or not someone has a gun. A firearm is far from the only murder weapon possible. Hell, bare hands take more lives every year than AR-15s, yet guns are still the primary focus for anyone pushing a program to “address violence.”

Stop.

The truth is that the victims of domestic violence deserve real solutions. They deserve more than a program that takes a few guns away and then pretends the problem is solved. Stop trying to signal your righteousness and start actually working to end the problem.