Four Reasons for America to Oppose Red Flag Gun Confiscation Laws
Forum Information
You will earn 1.5 pts. per new post (reply) in this forum.
**Registered members may reply to any topic in this forum**
You will earn 1.5 pts. per new post (reply) in this forum.
**Registered members may reply to any topic in this forum**
-
- Posts: 17274
- Joined: Mon Oct 30, 2017 5:16 pm
- Contact:
- Status: Offline
Opinion by Dennis Petrocelli, MD
Four Reasons for America to Oppose Red Flag Gun Confiscation Laws – Biden, Klobuchar, Warren, YangUSA – -(AmmoLand.com)- If you listen to the pundits, red flag laws are intended to separate potentially dangerous people from their guns before they cause harm. In theory, how could anyone oppose the idea? Don't you want to keep people safe? Think of the children! The problems begin when these laws get written down. The seventeen law versions assorted states and the District of Columbia have are, in general, vague laws. After taking evidence, the judge has to decide whether or not the evidence presented makes the case that the person is likely to be dangerous with a firearm. How will the judge make that call? The laws don't provide any guidance as to what actions comport with a likelihood of future violence. Although some cases might be straightforward, such as when someone makes a clear threat to cause harm (in which case, why not charge them criminally and lock them up rather than just their guns!), I suspect many more cases will be much more difficult to judge fairly. Here's the problem in a nutshell: mental health people, like myself, have struggled since the dawn of our profession to help courts determine whether or not someone is likely to cause harm. We even struggle with determining whether or not someone would commit a second violent act after receiving treatment following the first. It is simply not as easy as it sounds: people change, their life circumstances change, their condition – if they have one – wax and wane, etc. All of our methods of risk assessment have considerable limitations, they are not Magic 8 Balls! Yes, red flag laws are unconstitutional. Yes, they violate one or another cornerstone of our justice system. But as the title of this post suggests, I have four very specific additional reasons to oppose red flag laws.
Dennis Petrocelli, MD
Dr. Dennis Petrocelli has practiced forensic psychiatry for twenty years in Virginia. He is a contributing member of Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership, a nationwide network of physicians, allied health professionals, scientists, and others who support the safe and lawful use of firearms. He recently appeared on the Gun for Hire Radio podcast to speak out against “red flag laws”: https://media.blubrry.com/gunforhirerad ... de_431.mp3

- Elizabeth Warren
- Joe Biden
- Amy Klobuchar
- Andrew Yang [update Yang has dropped out of the presidential race]
- Yang: “We need to know who you are, what you’re doing, and why you have this arsenal.”
- Klobuchar: “We can (enact gun control) without Congress. And then we can introduce sweeping legislation.” (Who is this we?!?!?)
Dennis Petrocelli, MD
Dr. Dennis Petrocelli has practiced forensic psychiatry for twenty years in Virginia. He is a contributing member of Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership, a nationwide network of physicians, allied health professionals, scientists, and others who support the safe and lawful use of firearms. He recently appeared on the Gun for Hire Radio podcast to speak out against “red flag laws”: https://media.blubrry.com/gunforhirerad ... de_431.mp3