Illinois lawmakers passed legislation named after a Little Village woman who was allegedly shot and killed by her husband in 2023.
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Karina Gonzalez, who held an order of protection against her husband Jose Alvarez, tragically lost her life along with her daughter in a fatal shooting incident. Her son also sustained injuries during the attack.
Karina’s Bill will require police to more quickly confiscate guns from alleged abuserswhen an order of protection is in place.
Alvarez has since been charged in the murders of his wife and daughter
Illinois lawmakers passed legislation named after a Little Village woman who was allegedly shot and killed by her husband in 2023.
State Representative Maura Hirschauer of Batavia sponsored the legislation in the Illinois House.
“Before the introduction of this legislation, the state of Illinois and our FOID card system recognized that individuals under an order of protection should forfeit their FOID card,” explained Hirschauer. “However, the infrastructure and procedures were lacking for law enforcement to effectively remove firearms in such cases.”
Victoria Watkins is Vice President of Advocacy for Wings, a domestic violence service provider.
She shared the dangerous when an abuser has a gun.
Illinois lawmakers passed legislation named after a Little Village woman who was allegedly shot and killed by her husband in 2023.
“This imbalance of power creates a dangerous situation. Being aware that an abuser possesses a weapon not only heightens the risks to your own safety as a potential survivor but also endangers the safety of those in your vicinity, including children and other family members,” noted Watkins.
The law sets forth parameters for police to carry out the search warrant says Hirschauer.
“One important aspect that we worked on with law enforcement was to make sure that they had the opportunity to modify the search warrants or take a look at the search warrants and if there’s not enough information for them to do their jobs safely or if they need something else, they have time to do that. They have 96 hours to serve the search warrant once it’s granted. And then additional, they can petition for an additional 96 hours,” she said.
Resources for victims of domestic abuse:
Wings:
24 Hour Hotline
(847) 221-5680
Connections for Abused Women and Their Children
24 hour hotline: 773-278-4566
Mujeres Latinas en Acción
mujereslatinasenaccion.org
24 hour Illinois Domestic Abuse Hotline:
877-863-6338
The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence
the-network.org
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