Red Flag Laws

President Trump has come out in support of “red flag” laws as they apply to legal gun ownership. Today, 08/05/2019 in a White House Press Conference, he stated his support for this legislation.

As a legal gun owner and a holder of a concealed carry permit, the President’s statements today trouble me greatly.

Much of what you might read online call “red flag” laws, a gun violence prevention law. While that phrase might sound good to the general public, the phrase is not without its own set of problems.

Red Flag laws permit the police or family members to petition a state court to order the temporary removal of firearms from a person who may present a danger to others or themselves. A judge makes the determination to issue the order based on statements and actions made by the gun owner in question. After a set time, the guns are returned to the person from whom they were seized unless another court hearing extends the period of confiscation.

A ‘Red Flag Gun law would allow anyone who doesn’t like you to make up a bogus complaint against you, allowing a state judge to order your firearms to be confiscated.

This would happen -
Before you’ve been charged.
Before you’ve been indicted.
And before you’ve been convicted…of anything!

The court proceedings happen in secret, via ex-parte’ court hearings that you would know nothing about and would not be able to attend — eliminating your fourth amendment, due process rights. The apparent standard is not whether there is probable cause to believe that the gun owner has committed a crime. Rather, the standard is some subjective determination about whether the owner represents some perceived danger.

The duration of the red flag law is unclear. It could be a duration which could end up being weeks, months, or even a year. Legal gun owners would then be forced to go to court multiple times just to win their Constitutional rights back.

The problem of mass shootings, such as occurred in early August in El Paso and Dayton and for that matter, gun violence, in general, is not one to be solved by finger-pointing, knee jerk reactions, useless legislation or the calls for unconstitutional gun grabs. Those who are not supporters of the second amendment will do whatever they can to politicize these incidents, thinking they will gain power from it.

No matter how one looks at it, Red Flag laws are substandard and unacceptable legislation and should be avoided at all costs.