Red Flag Failure

[Recusant]

We have a "Red Flag" law in Virginia as well. It really violates a person's due process rights since the authorities can take your guns before you get to see a judge. Looks like the folks in Indiana dropped the ball on this one; they took the gun but didn't put the shooter on a prohibited persons list.

Authorities Did Not Try to Use ‘Red Flag’ Law for Indianapolis Gunman (msn.com)

 

[HayesGreener]

There have been several active shooter cases where local authorities failed to do their part to get the subject into NICS. The Mary Stoneman Douglas shooter should have been arrested for a domestic violence felony but some misguided youthful offender program kept him out of the system, and he had been reported to the FBI as a potential school shooter. The Washington Navy Yard shooter had been involved in a prior gun incident which should have got him on the NICS list.

There are a wide range of "red flag" laws that vary greatly from state to state. In my view, there must be due process built into the law and there should be a court order before any seizure occurs.

 

[Recusant]

I believe the in the idea of taking the person and not their guns. A judge would have to issue a warrant and the accused would be held for a period of no more than 72 hours. During this time period the accused would undergo a psyh eval and leo's would do a threat assessment. The accused would be afforded the right to an attorney, and all information would be presented at a hearing before a judge who would decide the course of action to be taken. This is much better than taking a person's guns and leaving a potential threat loose in the community to do what ever.