Supreme Court justices voted 8-1 in favour of a 1994 ban on firearms for people with restraining orders to stay away from their spouses or partners. The decision reverses a ruling from an appeals court in New Orleans which had struck down the law.
Chief Justice John Roberts said the law uses common sense after a judge determines an individual poses a credible threat of physical violence, the Associated Press news agency reported.
Praising the outcome, President Joe Biden said: “No one who has been abused should have to worry about their abuser getting a gun … survivors of domestic violence and their families will still be able to count on critical protections.”
In earlier hearings, some justices voiced concern that deciding otherwise could jeopardise the background check system which the Biden administration argues has stopped more than 75,000 gun sales in the past 25 years based on domestic violence protective orders.
Government data shows firearms are the most common weapon used in murders of spouses, intimate partners, children or relatives, while according to gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety an average of 70 women a month are shot and killed by intimate partners in the US.
