NEVADANS FOR BACKGROUND CHECKS DELIVERS NEARLY 250,000 SIGNATURES TO QUALIFY BACKGROUND CHECKS INITIATIVE FOR 2016 BALLOT
Gun Violence Survivors, Law Enforcement, Domestic Violence Advocates and Concerned Nevadans Deliver Record Number of Signatures for Nevada Ballot Initiative
Nevadans Carry Momentum from Last Tuesday’s Landmark Victory in Washington State (I-594), First-Ever Popular Vote to Fully Close Background Check Loophole
Las Vegas, NV -- Nevadans for Background Checks today delivered 246,674 signatures – a record number for a Nevada ballot initiative and more than double than were necessary – to qualify the Background Check Initiative for the November 2016 ballot. The signatures were gathered in every single Nevada county over the last three months.
Gun violence survivors, law enforcement officials, domestic violence advocates, and concerned Nevadans held a delivery event Wednesday to submit the signatures and urge Nevadans to support the measure to help keep guns out of the hands of felons, domestic abusers and the severely mentally ill by closing dangerous loopholes in Nevada state law.
Right now, federal law requires background checks on gun sales at licensed dealers, but guns can be legally purchased from unlicensed sellers – online, at gun shows and even from strangers in parking lots – without any background check, no questions asked. The Background Check Initiative would create a level playing field where all gun sellers must follow the same set of rules, making sure everyone undergoes the same background check when buying a gun.
Just last week voters overwhelmingly passed Washington State’s background check initiative, I-594 – the first-ever popular vote to fully close the private sale loophole. Polling shows that 86 percent of Nevadans support background checks to keep guns out of dangerous hands.
In the 16 states that have already closed the loophole, 38 percent fewer women are shot to death by intimate partners and 39 percent fewer law enforcement officers are shot and killed with handguns.
“Support for the Second Amendment goes hand-in-hand with keeping guns out of the hands of dangerous people,” said Bill Young, former Sheriff of Clark County. “I was in law enforcement for nearly 30 years, and I spent 5 of those years as the Sheriff of Clark County. My experience as both a police officer and sheriff here in Las Vegas has shown me in great detail how important it is to keep guns away from criminals. The Background Check Initiative can help us do just that.”
“When people talk about domestic violence, they usually don’t realize that they’re talking about gun violence, too,” said Lisa Chapman, Director of Community Relations for Safe Nest Nevada. “In the states that have closed the private sale loophole, 38 percent fewer women are shot to death by intimate partners. Now voters in Nevada will have the opportunity to join that group of states where women are safer from gun violence.”
“Today we’re handing in more signatures than have ever been collected for a Nevada ballot initiative, and they come from every county in the state,” said Linda Cavazos, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America Ambassador and Nevada mental health care professional. “The message is clear: when lawmakers won’t act, voters will take background checks directly to the ballot box. This isn’t a partisan issue – it’s about respecting the Second Amendment and keeping guns out of the hands of criminals to save lives.”
Over the next two years, Nevadans for Background Checks will secure widespread support by bringing together a broad coalition of gun violence survivors, law enforcement, domestic violence advocates, gun owners, families, community leaders, elected officials and concerned Nevadans.
