Red Flag Bill fails to pass in Maine Legislature

I just wanted to pass on the good news that the Red Flag bill proposed in Maine has been voted down in the Maine Legislature. The not so good news is that a negotiated “watered down” version, which requires input from mental health professionals as opposed to pure heresay, is likely to pass. I’ll make further updates when I know more.

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That is good news, @Nathan! Here’s an article I found about the vote.

One thing that makes me go hmmmm:

If they’re already in protective custody, why would you need to surrender their guns?

Also,


600 suicides should definitely be cause for alarm, but if they don’t have a gun and want to kill themselves there are other ways. Look at what happened in Australia. When they enacted all of those gun laws, suicide by gun went down and other methods of suicides went way up. :frowning:

We’ll keep watching the legislature with you, @Nathan!

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There will always be more “battles”, but at least it seems that Maine continues to refuse to follow in the footsteps of other states in the Northeast. Even with strong Democrat majorities in the Legislature, as well as a Democrat in the State House, Maine has been very resistant to gun control.

@Dawn - You are right about suicides, and the same can be said for murders. If someone is determined to do harm, they will find a way. Spitting on our Constitutional rights is never the answer.

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@Dawn - It looks like the watered down version is going to easily pass…

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It’s better than the alternative one they proposed. A few points that it does include which are better than most of the Red Flag laws I’ve seen:

  • requires a judge to hold a hearing within 14 days to decide whether to return guns to the individual
  • judge could continue withholding them for one year (I like the set timeframes)
  • a person’s guns could only be confiscated after a doctor or other medical professional has determined that they could pose a threat to themselves or others (I’d like to see this in more detail, who is the medical professional and what happens if they find an anti-gun professional in favor of confiscation for all?)

Please don’t take this as the USCCA or I agree with Red Flag laws.

I do agree with people having certain mental illnesses not having firearms - if your mind cannot tell what is real and what is a creation of your mind, you probably shouldn’t own a firearm for your safety and the safety of others.

I’m interested in what you have to say about that?

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@Dawn - In all honesty, I do not have a major problem with this particular bill. I do agree that people with genuine and severe mental conditions should not have access to firearms. At least this law is worded in a way that someone with an axe to grind can’t simply call the cops and have your guns taken away based purely on their word versus yours. By requiring the opinion of a mental health professional, this law is not the infringement on constitutional rights as a true “Red Flag” law. I totally understand that this is your personal opinion as well. There will of course be people who will disagree with ANY law that even attempts to regulate firearms, but we have to acknowledge that there are really some people who have no business having access to firearms.

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And with a judge involved within 14 days - it gives due process to the situation. It’s no longer a he said/she said situation.

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@Dawn - Exactly. At least there are set time frames and some semblance of due process. All in all, considering that this was the ONLY gun control measure to make it through Maine’s Democrat-controlled Legislature in this session, it is a good thing for the people of Maine. Of course, I will continue to keep an eye on Augusta (our capital), and stay in touch with my state senator and representative.

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