(The Center Square) — Gun control advocates in Maine are pushing to adopt a ‘red flag’ law that authorizes law enforcement to seize weapons belonging to someone deemed to be dangerous to themselves or others, but critics say the changes won’t prevent mass shootings.
The Maine Gun Safety Coalition announced that it has formed a coalition to begin a signature-gathering campaign seeking to put a proposal for so-called extreme-risk protection orders before Maine voters in 2025. The group points to a report on the Lewiston shooting, which they say “made it clear that Maine’s current law is weak, ineffective, and cumbersome.”
“In the aftermath of last year’s tragedy in Lewiston, people in communities across Maine have asked what could have been done differently,” Nacole Palmer, the coalition’s executive director, said in a statement. “The Lewiston report laid bare the inadequacies of the half-measure lawmakers passed in 2019. The commission did its part, and now the rest is up to us.”
The proposal, if approved, would allow police, friends or relatives of a legal gun owner to seek an order if they believe that person poses a risk to themselves or others.
Democrats and gun control groups have been pushing to tighten the state’s gun control laws in the wake of the Oct. 25, 2023, shooting by Army Reservist Robert R. Card Jr. in a Lewiston bowling alley that killed 18 people. Card died by suicide, according to authorities. However, state lawmakers declined to approve a similar bill during the recent session.
Maine has a ‘yellow flag’ law that requires a mental health evaluation before a court can sign off on restricting someone’s access to weapons, and the process must be initiated by a law enforcement official. Gun control advocates have long argued it limits the ability of authorities to take away a person’s weapons if they are considered a danger to themselves or others.
But Second Amendment groups argue that Card’s weapons could have been seized by the current law, but say officials failed to act. Making the law even stricter wouldn’t reduce the chances of a mass shooting, they argue.
“It is doubtful red flag laws reduce crime or save lives,” Laura Whitcomb, president of Gun Owners of Maine, said in recent testimony opposing legislation to authorize the program. “There is no doubt, however, that they are devoid of due process and hurt the law-abiding. All this law does is check a box for the gun-control lobby and violate the rights of Mainers.”
The National Rifle Association says red flag proposals would put Mainers “at risk of becoming felons for the simple act of transferring a firearm to a family member, friend, or neighbor.”
An independent commission launched by Gov. Janet Mills that reviewed events leading up to the October shooting recently issued a report noting that the state’s yellow flag law might have prevented the incident if law enforcement had utilized it.
Mills, a Democrat, supported gun control policies during the 2018 gubernatorial primary but has largely resisted them as governor. She has filed a proposal to strengthen the yellow flag law.
Republicans have criticized Democratic lawmakers for seeking to politicize the Lewiston shooting to push through “radical changes” to Maine’s gun control laws.
Regulations vary widely, but at least 21 states and Washington, D.C., have red flag laws, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Florida, Vermont, Rhode Island, Maryland and New Jersey all passed red flag bills after the Parkland, Fla., shooting.
New Hampshire lawmakers recently rejected a proposal to create a red flag law amid opposition from the Legislature’s Republican majority.
