bearingarms.com By Cam Edwards
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee is still stumping for a “red flag” law, but he doesn’t want to call it what it is. Instead, the governor is calling on the Republican-controlled legislature to deliver him a bill establishing “temporary mental health orders of protection” instead. What’s that?
Well, it’s a “red flag” law by another name.
Law enforcement would first determine if a person is a threat, then a hearing with the person in question would be held, and a judge would rule whether they should indeed have their weapons taken away temporarily. If so, the person would have to surrender their guns, ammunition and any handgun carry license to a third party within 48 hours, for up to 180 days.
A person facing a order of protection petition would be offered a court-appointed attorney, and anyone determined to have filed a frivolous report could face a felony perjury charge. There would also be a mental health evaluation.
Lee said top lawmakers gave input on the proposal and argued it isn’t a “red flag law.” He called that term a “toxic political label meant to draw lines in the sand so nothing gets done.”
No, it is a “red flag” law, albeit it one that has far more due process protections that most of the versions already enacted around the country, which allow for ex parte hearings where the subject of the petition is not present to provide a defense. The vast majority of “red flag” laws also don’t allow for the use of public defenders, given that they’re civil matters, and a mental health evaluation is generally not a part of the process either, at least in most states (Maine is a notable exception, requiring both a judicial finding and a mental health professional’s determination that a person poses a danger to themselves or others).
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