Washington State Wants To Snatch Guns For WrongThink

By Tom Knighton

AP Photo/Michael Conroy

The idea behind Extreme Risk Protective Orders, otherwise known as “Red Flag Orders” is that they can be used to disarm those considered to be a threat to themselves or others. That first bit is there so they can be justified under mental health grounds as proponents figure they can count those potential uses as wins to pad their statistics somewhere down the road.

But the idea of taking guns from people who may be a threat is a tempting proposition.

However, in Washington state, they’re taking that concept and considering a proposal which would take it in a very different direction. Of course, The Trace absolutely loves the idea.

Now, the state wants to use ERPOs for more gun owners who, like the man who went to Northwest Hospital in early April, threaten to commit hate-fueled violence. Among a slew of gun violence prevention bills signed by Governor Jay Inslee in early May was an amendment to the current ERPO law that specifies that judges should consider whether a troubled gun owner has been convicted of “malicious harassment,” a category that includes behaviors like burning crosses and defacing property with swastikas. It’s the first …Read the Rest

Source:: Bearing Arms