How did a disgraced airman, convicted by court-martial of assaulting his wife and child, get access to the weapons he used Nov. 5 to commit the deadliest mass shooting in an American house of worship? The short answer seems to be: not legally. But the case of Devin Patrick Kelley, who murdered 26 parishioners before dying of a gunshot in his flipped car, illuminates a confusing tangle of federal regulations that are supposed to keep guns out of domestic abusers’ hands.
My story started the way many do, with sparkly attraction that morphed into friendship, then love. Unfortunately, my story also ended the way too many do, with holes in the walls, broken doors, and police knocking at the front door.
Editor’s Note: This article has been modified from its original version, which was published at The Havok Journal, a Blackside Concepts publication that focuses on current affairs. Valerie Gene Davis is a pseudonym.
