Red flag laws
Red flag laws, also known as extreme risk protection orders (ERPOs), are regulations that allow authorities to temporarily restrict an individual's access to firearms if a court determines that person poses a significant threat to themselves or others. Enacted at the state level in the United States, these laws emerged as a response to rising gun violence, particularly mass shootings, with the aim of addressing public safety concerns while respecting constitutional rights. The first such law was introduced in Connecticut in 1999 following a tragic workplace shooting, and by 2019, several states had adopted similar measures, especially after high-profile incidents like the Parkland shooting in Florida.
These laws generally permit concerned family members or law enforcement to petition a court for an ERPO, which can lead to the suspension of an individual's gun rights for a specified period. While proponents argue that red flag laws can help prevent suicides and gun violence, critics express concerns about their implementation, potential infringement on Second Amendment rights, and the lack of consistent enforcement across jurisdictions. Some argue that these laws may not adequately address underlying mental health issues or deter individuals intent on obtaining firearms illegally. As the laws continue to evolve, ongoing debates about their effectiveness and the balance between public safety and individual rights remain prominent in discussions about gun control in America.
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Red flag laws
Red flag laws (or extreme risk measures, as they are alternately known) are regulations that enable authorities to temporarily suspend the gun ownership of any person determined by a court to present a clear threat to themselves or others. These laws, which had only been enacted at the state level in the United States as of 2019, vary from location to location, but are intended to reduce gun violence without violating rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the US Constitution. Such laws have largely been passed as a response to the increased levels of gun violence in the United States in the twenty-first century, in particular mass shootings, and have enjoyed greater bipartisan support than many other proposed gun control measures.
Brief History
Red flag laws often have their origins in mass shootings. The first such law was passed in Connecticut in 1999 after a workplace shooting at the Connecticut Lottery resulted in five deaths. By 2018, five states had enacted some form of red flag law—at least three of which were passed in response to shootings by individuals later determined to have mental health issues.
The move to enact further gun laws was particularly spurred after a mass shooting at Marjorie Stoneman High School in Parkland, Florida, in 2018. The shooter, Nikolas Cruz, was well-known to authorities. More than three dozen calls had been made to police about the Cruz family and at least three callers had warned the police between 2016 and 2018 that Cruz had threatened to open fire at his schoolmates. Cruz had attempted suicide in the past and had been identified as collecting both guns and knives. In the months after Cruz killed seventeen people, investigations focused on Cruz’s mental health. Gun control advocates noted that as an eighteen-year-old with no criminal record, Cruz was legally entitled to buy firearms according to Florida laws. He was guaranteed these rights despite having been banned from carrying a backpack on the Parkland school campus as he was regarded as a potential threat to fellow students due to threats to schoolmates and ongoing mental health issues. Many gun control advocates noted that had Florida enacted a red flag law, Cruz might have been prevented from buying weapons or having access to the firearms he used in the shooting.
Due to considerable concerns about strengthening schools against potential future attacks like the one at Parkland, the Florida Legislature passed a gun control package in March 2018 which included red flag provisions. Eleven other states—mostly in Democratic strongholds—passed similar legislation in the months that followed. As of 2019, red flag laws had only been enacted at the state level in the United States. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia had various forms of these regulation, and four other states were considering red flag legislation for passage in 2020. In late 2019, Senators Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, and Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, announced that they were crafting a bipartisan federal law that would offer funding to states that individually pass red flag laws, but would not require states to adopt red flag laws.
Overview
Red flag laws vary between states, but generally they allow family members, law enforcement agencies, or concerned citizens to ask a court to authorize an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) that suspends a person’s right to legally possess guns if they are viewed as presenting an imminent risk to themselves or any member of the public. Such measures are deliberately temporary so as to not violate a person’s Second Amendment right to bear arms. The duration of a court-ordered ERPO depends on each state’s individual laws. Such laws are not always strongly enforced, particularly in states where gun rights maintain strong support. For instance, in Colorado, New Mexico, and Oregon, several county sheriffs have announced that they would go to jail rather than enforce red flag laws. Dozens of other communities have passed local ordinances called “Second Amendment Sanctuary County” resolutions that bar the use of county funds on red flag laws.
Despite their increased support, these measures have been criticized by people on both sides of the gun control debate. Some supporters of gun control argue that these laws are merely intended to serve as distractions from tougher laws that would have a greater impact on limiting gun deaths. In addition, they point out that the court orders required to take a person’s guns away can be difficult to obtain, and even when a potentially dangerous individual has their guns taken away, they may quickly petition to regain them. Even in cases where they still are unable to regain access to firearms, people argue that such measures do not prevent determined individuals from obtaining weapons illegally.
Gun right groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) note that while they support the principles behind red flag laws, they oppose how they have been implemented. They suggest that such laws infringe upon the Second Amendment rights of gun owners. Many critics have noted that people who truly present a risk can use other means to hurt the people around them and that red flag laws do little to address the mental health issues that might drive their actions.
As these laws are still in their relative infancy, little conclusive research into their effectiveness has been conducted. Proponents of red flag laws note they may be most useful in preventing suicides, which account for up to 60 percent of all gun deaths. In a study published by the American Psychiatric Association’s Psychiatric Services that reviewed gun deaths between 1981 and 2015, researchers discovered that suicides by guns were reduced by 7.5 percent and 1.6 percent in Indiana and Connecticut respectively after their adoption of red flag laws.
Researchers examining this issue note that confusion about these laws has limited their effectiveness. In California, where a red flag law was passed in 2014, fewer than two hundred ERPOs had been issued in the first four years of the law’s existence. For instance, critics noted that Marine Corps veteran David Long, who killed twelve people at a bar in Thousand Oaks, California, in November 2018, had been reported to the police as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and had uploaded videos in which he confessed to harboring a desire to hurt women. Investigations suggested that the police may have been unaware that Long was a candidate for an ERPO and may even have been unsure of the law’s existence.
Bibliography
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