Progress On A Gun Safety Bill? The Senate says YES!
Over the weekend, the U.S. Senate cobbled together a bipartisan coalition that seems to have reached an agreement on the key issues of a bill if not the exact wording...yet...Politico reports:
Our plan saves lives while also protecting the constitutional rights of law-abiding Americans. We look forward to earning broad, bipartisan support and passing our commonsense proposal into law.....(The) emerging package is anchored around extra scrutiny for gun buyers under the age of 21, grants to states to implement so-called red flag laws and new spending on mental health treatment and school security.
This type of law allows courts to confiscate guns that are in the hands of people who appear to be violent or unstable.
- "Red flag” laws allow law enforcement or family members to petition courts to temporarily remove firearms from individuals if they pose a danger to themselves or others.
- Courts can issue emergency orders that remove the person’s weapons for up to three weeks. Final orders, which include the opportunity for the person to defend themselves at a hearing, often last up to a year.
- Nineteen states and Washington, D.C. have red flag laws.
Florida's Red Flag law has removed guns from thousands of people since it was enacted after the 2018 Parkland mass killing. The National Rifle Association opposed the Florida law and urged that voters throw out the “turncoat Republicans” who supported it.
Researchers say it is difficult to predict how many lives could be saved by preventing mass shootings due to Red Flag laws but they say there is a measurable impact on preventing suicides with guns.
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