From the September 2019 issue of Congressional Digest

Extreme risk laws, also known as “Red Flag” laws, enable citizens to prevent a person in crisis from obtaining firearms.

The laws are designed to de-escalate a crisis situation. If a family member or police officer believes that the person might harm themselves or someone else, she may petition a judge to restrict access.

In March, Representative Ted Deutch (R-FL) reintroduced legislation that would give grants to States that have such laws. Also in March, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on gun control entitled “Red Flag Laws: Examining Guidelines for State Action,” at which experts gave testimony. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who chairs the committee, said:

“I support the Second Amendment. It’s a critical piece of our Constitution and our nation’s history. While Republicans and Democrats — on this Committee and across America — can disagree on the Second Amendment, what’s clear to me is that recent tragedies in the United States are examples of a common problem — a failure to identify and lessen risk from individuals who may be showing signs of distress and the willingness to hurt themselves or others.”      

At the same hearing, legal scholar David Kopel said that nearly a third of red flag laws have affected innocent people. He also said Federal funding should be denied to States that “thwart cross-examination, promote unnecessary no-knock raids, leave innocent victims without a civil remedy for false or malicious petitions, or deny any of the seven core elements of due process.”

Colorado passed its red flag law in April, making it the fifteenth State to enact an extreme risk law. The District of Columbia passed one in 2018.

For more, see the February 2019 Congressional Digest article “Rule To Ban Bumpstocks,” the January 2019 article “Gun Background Check Bill,” and the March 2013 issue on “Gun Violence Prevention.”