Crime & Law
Karina’s Law Aims to Reduce Domestic Violence Gun Deaths. A Son Sees It as Part of His Mother’s Lasting Legacy
by Britton Struthers, Medill School of Journalism
On the evening of July 2, 2023, Karina Gonzalez and her daughter, Daniela Alvarez, were singing karaoke at a party near their home in the Little Village neighborhood. Less than 24 hours later, they were dead.
“Back in June of 2023, my mom got an order of protection from my father. About two weeks later, my dad ended up shooting and killing both my sister and my mom,” recounts Jesus “Manny” Emmanuel Alvarez, Gonzalez’s son, who was present the night of the attack.
On Feb. 10, 2025, Governor JB Pritzer officially signed into law House Bill 4144 (now Public Act 103-1065), better known as Karina’s Law.
“We are thinking of Karina Gonzalez, and her beautiful daughter Daniela,” said Pritzker in February. “It’s in their memory and in the name of Karina Gonzalez that I sign Karina’s Law today.”
The law goes into effect this Sunday, on Mother’s Day.
Karina’s Law passed 43-10 in the Senate and 80-33 in the House.
“What Karina’s Law does is it gives law enforcement the clear process and ability to be able to retrieve those firearms from the alleged offenders,” says attorney Victoria Watkins, who sits on the Board of Directors at WINGS Program Inc., a domestic violence advocacy, education and services provider, as the vice president of the Advocacy Committee.
The language of law specifies that law enforcement are required to remove firearms from an alleged abuser’s home within 96 hours of a court-granted order of protection.
“Up until we passed this bill, the option was always there, on both the criminal side and the civil side, for someone to choose the firearm remedy. So, people were checking that box, but there was no procedure for the courts, and for law enforcement, to follow to actually get those guns out of the hands of abusers,” said state Rep. Maura Hirschauer (D-Batavia).
The firearm remedy in Illinois law allows for police to remove guns from a home; however, Karina’s Law makes it clear who is responsible for their removal, and when.
The law gained traction after Illinois saw an increase in the rate of domestic violence homicides. The Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s most recent homicide report revealed that in 2023, there were 120 domestic violence deaths across Illinois, with firearms responsible for 68% of these deaths.
Manny Alvarez, son of Karina Gonzalez, hugs state Rep. Edgar Gonzalez Jr. (D-Chicago) in the Illinois House on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. Karina Gonzalez, the namesake of the legislation, was allegedly shot and killed by her husband in Chicago in 2023 after receiving an order of protection. (Andrew Adams / Capitol News Illinois)
Constitutional Questions
Not everyone was in favor of passing further gun regulation.
“What was a little bit disheartening listening to the debates on the Senate floor when this was passing, was feeling like people’s right to firearms was being prioritized more than women’s and children’s lives,” says Tessa Kuipers, legal advocacy program and policy director for family rescue, a Chicago-based social services organization.
Some questioned the constitutionality of the law and are seeking to challenge its implementation in court.
“Karina’s Law is well-intentioned,” says Richard Pearson, executive director of the Illinois State Rifle Association. “But it avoids the issue of due process.”
Due process requires that individuals be treated equally and fairly in the legal process; this means individuals should be aware of all charges made against them, and that they are guaranteed the opportunity for an impartial trial.
David Drwencke, a Chicago-based Criminal Defense Attorney, explains how Karina’s Law might impede on an individual’s right to due process.
“The issue that I can see from my client’s perspective is where my client is not there,” Drwencke said. “So it’s called ‘ex-parte’, where the person who wants to get an order of protection goes to court, they plead their case before a judge, and that’s the only thing that a judge will hear. And now, somebody’s made an allegation, which may or may not be true, because this bears out at a hearing. Yet in the interim, you’re going to be without your weapons, among other implications if this order of protection is put in place on an emergent basis.”
Drwencke asserts that everyone has rights, accused or not, and so the best option forward is trying to draft a solution that is more conscious of that dichotomy.
“We have to have an opportunity to have both sides heard before maybe losing a right,” he said.
However, Hirschauer says that due process was considered heavily while drafting Karina’s Law, and that unless proven guilty, firearm removal is a temporary remedy designed to keep people in a potential domestic abuse situation out of harm’s way.
“We respect everyone’s constitutional right to a firearm, but everyone also has a constitutional right to live in freedom and safety,” she said.
Survivors Cheer Law
Domestic violence survivor and self-proclaimed “champion” (because she did not simply survive), Tracy Reed, shares her testimony in hopes that others may recognize the warning signs of domestic abuse, and find their way out of a dangerous situation.
Reed, who grew up in Englewood, says she was aware of others in abusive situations, but never thought it was something that would happen to her.
“To not even be able to recognize it until I was deeply in it, is the worst part, you know,” she said.
Reed’s partner was emotionally and financially abusive. They dated on and off for years, but when Reed found the courage to leave for good, she found herself without a home, and struggling with money. On June 16, 2024, Reed says she agreed to meet up with her alleged abuser in exchange for cash; however, after they met up, and she drove to his hotel to drop him off, he refused to leave her vehicle.
In the car, Reed says, “he proceeded to take out his weapon, and hold it to me and threaten me. He said, ‘I knew I was going to die today, did you?’”
Reed recorded portions of the event, where her alleged abuser can be heard threatening her.
Reed drove to the police station while her abuser was still in the car; however, law enforcement did not intervene. After seven hours held at gunpoint, her abuser left the car voluntarily.
According to the PubMed National Library of Medicine, the presence of a gun in a domestic violence situation increases the risk of homicide by 500%.
Sarah Manos is also a domestic violence survivor from Illinois. She met her abuser on a dating app during the pandemic. While most cases of domestic abuse unfold over time, severe abuse began immediately into Manos’ relationship.
“He threatened within the first couple of days of us talking, that if I tried to leave, he and his dad, who he said worked in law enforcement, would find me and my family and kill all of us,” she said.
Over the next few months, her abuser ended up torturing and killing Manos’ two dogs, Daisy and Kirby. At the time, Manos was unaware that her abuser was at fault for her dogs’ deaths. Following these events, she was granted an order of protection by a judge in Illinois.
“On the order of protection the judge wrote that my abuser had to turn over his firearms,“ she said.
Manos was in contact with the police in the meanwhile, but when she informed law enforcement that her abuser had threatened her with guns, “The police said, ‘Well, we can’t ever enforce that.” Manos was shocked by the lack of support she received from Illinois’ judicial and law enforcement systems; she is not alone. To this day, Tracy Reed’s abuser has not yet been served the order of protection.
“I thought the first time I stood in front of the judge, that was enough. I thought that the information that I gave them was enough, and it wasn’t. And I needed to go back time, and time, and time, and time again,” says Reed.
However, both survivors are excited for what Karina’s Law may mean for other victims of domestic violence.
“I think the law is so important. For other survivors and victims out there, this will have an impact,” says Manos.
A Mother’s Legacy
This, all along, was Manny Alvarez’s intent when he agreed to help promote Karina’s Law after his mother and sister were killed.
“Manny, he has made a real difference in the lives of so many people in this state. His advocacy will save lives. I wish he never had to be in that position, I know he wishes that too, but he really took that pain and made something lasting and impactful with it, and I’m sure his mom and sister are beyond proud of him,” says Hirschauer, who worked closely with Alvarez while drafting the law.
Currently, advocates, legislators and local law enforcement are preparing for Karina’s Law to take effect this Sunday.
In the meantime, Manny shares a message to his mom, Karina Gonzalez, ahead of Mother’s Day.
“You thought you were just a normal immigrant from Mexico, but you’ve done a lot of things,” Alvarez said. “It’s very powerful to see that someone who took a lot of risk to even be here and provide for her children and find any means necessary to keep the lights on and make sure there was food on the table is now changing lives and saving lives.”
And to his sister, Daniela Alvarez: “Thank you for being there during my worst times.”
Manny now works for New Life Centers, a faith-based nonprofit in Little Village. Dedicated to saving more lives, he remains inspired by his sister to pursue a career helping at-risk youth and preventing teen violence.
Note: Help is available. Call or text the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline (877-863-6338) or National Domestic Violence Hotline (800-799-7233 // text BEGIN to 88788) for 24/7 assistance.
