The gun that killed my sister

Last October, my sister Zina was murdered with an illegal gun that her estranged husband bought on Armslist.com. Unfortunately, nearly one year later, it’s still too easy for criminals and other dangerous people to obtain guns over the Internet.

After Zina was physically abused by her husband Radcliffe, a judge issued a restraining order that prohibited him from owning or buying guns. He couldn’t buy a gun at a licensed gun dealer, because he would have failed a background check. So he went online, where he posted a “want-to-buy” ad on Armslist. Within hours, he found a seller and bought a FNH .40 caliber semiautomatic handgun, which he picked up in a McDonald’s parking lot for $500 cash.

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No background check. No questions asked.

The next day, he stormed into the Brookfield, Wisconsin spa where Zina worked, murdered her and two other women, injured four others, and killed himself.

I’m a gun owner, a hunter, and a member of the National Rifle Association. I believe in the Second Amendment, but I also believe in sensible gun laws. I’ve seen how devastating gun violence can be. And I know that Radcliffe never should have been able to buy a gun online without a background check. A background check would have saved my sister’s life.

Today, Mayors Against Illegal Guns is releasing a new report that found that every year tens of thousands of criminals and domestic abusers like Radcliffe are looking for guns on Armslist.com, where they can easily buy weapons from private sellers without a background check.

According to the report, one in 30 people posting want-to-buy ads on the site have criminal histories that made it illegal for them to buy a gun. And we know that many of them will get away with it. They can post their own ads or respond to one of the tens of thousands of ads placed by private sellers. They find someone willing to make a deal. They do what Radcliffe did, and buy an illegal gun – no strings attached.

If background checks were required for all online sales, just think of how many lives we could save. The states that require background checks for all handgun sales – including for sales on Armslist and other online sites – have dramatically less gun violence. These states have half as many suicides and half as much gun trafficking. In those states, 38 percent fewer women are shot to death by their abusers.

That’s 38 percent fewer women killed like my sister Zina.

This is not a gun rights issue. Gun owners are used to taking background checks. They do it every time they buy a gun at a store, because they know that with rights come responsibilities. This problem is about illegal guns.

It is illegal for dangerous abusers like Radcliffe to buy a gun. But if these people don’t have to pass a background check every time they try to buy a gun, it doesn’t matter that they’re not allowed to own one. They easily get around the law – and because of this, more innocent Americans are killed each and every year.

Like too many people across this country, I know what can happen when we give dangerous people easy access to guns. That’s why I’m committed to speaking out for my sister, because she’s not here to speak for herself. And I’m committed to honoring her memory by making sure no one else has to lose his or her life to senseless gun violence.

It’s time for Congress to act, so we can prevent guns from falling into the wrong hands. We need our leaders in Washington to pass legislation that will require background checks for all online gun sales, common-sense legislation that will help prevent future tragedies and keep our loved ones safe.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misidentified the gun Zina's murderer used as a .40 caliber Glock handgun.