California lawmakers vote to expand gun restraining orders — but ACLU says bill goes too far

By Aaron Colen

California, and a handful of other states, have laws that allow family members, roommates, and law enforcement to request a restraining order to remove firearms from an individual who has shown signs of dangerous behavior.

On Monday, according to KOVR-TV, California lawmakers voted in favor of a bill expanding that power to employers, co-workers and school personnel.

ACLU, Republicans join in opposition

But the American Civil Liberties Union, rarely a conservative ally, says the bill goes too far, and joined some California Republicans in expressing concern over the measure.

The ACLU said in a statement that measures restricting those with mental health issues from buying or owning a gun “are too often not evidence-based, reinforce negative stereotypes, and raise significant equal protection, due process, and privacy issues.”

“It is not hard to imagine a scenario in which someone might harbor a bias of an irrational fear of a coworker based on that coworker belonging to some minority group that the person dislikes or distrusts,” ACLU advocate Lizzie Bunchen wrote, according to KCRA-TV. “The person subjected to the restraining order is not informed of the court proceeding and therefore has no opportunity to contest …Read the Rest

Source:: The Blaze