Reason.com - Free Minds and Free Markets
Reason logo Reason logo
  • Latest
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Subscribe
    • Crossword
  • Video
  • Podcasts
    • All Shows
    • The Reason Roundtable
    • The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie
    • The Soho Forum Debates
    • NEW! Why We Can't Have Nice Things
  • Volokh
  • Newsletters
  • Donate
    • Donate Online
    • Donate Crypto
    • Ways To Give To Reason Foundation
    • Torchbearer Society
    • Planned Giving
  • Subscribe
    • Print/Digital Subscriptions
    • Gift Subscriptions

Login Form

Create new account
Forgot password

Red Flag Laws

Do "red flag" laws prevent mass shootings? |  Isaiah Downing/Zuma Press/Newscom

Red Flag Laws

A 'Red Flag' Study Raises the Question of How Often People Who Talk About Mass Shootings Actually Commit Them

The researchers identified 662 cases involving threats to multiple victims, but they concede that it's likely "there are many more threats than completed events."

Jacob Sullum | 1.20.2023 4:15 PM

Do "red flag" laws prevent mass shootings? |  Isaiah Downing/Zuma Press/Newscom

Red Flag Laws

Could Colorado's 'Red Flag' Law Have Prevented the Club Q Massacre?

If an order had been issued, it would have expired months before the attack unless police successfully sought an extension.

Jacob Sullum | 11.28.2022 5:15 PM

Tina Ramirez shaking hands in a parking lot. | Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call/Newscom

Politics

Don't Weaponize Child Abuse Hotlines Against Your Political Opponents

Too much government authority lends itself to swatting-style abuse.

J.D. Tuccille | 10.17.2022 9:00 AM

Hand shaped like gun with Japanese flag symbol | Lex Villena; Photo: DPST/Newscom

Gun Rights

Jacob Sullum: Why Japanese Gun Control Isn't a Model for America

Senior Editor Jacob Sullum examines how the claim that Japanese gun restrictions account for the country's low violent crime rate isn't as simple as it sounds.

Peter Suderman | 7.15.2022 6:00 AM

a memorial for victims of the July 4, 2022, mass shooting in Highland Park, Illinois | Chris Sweda/TNS/Newscom

Mass Shootings

Why Didn't a 'Red Flag' Law Prevent the Illinois Mass Shooting, and Would New Federal Rules Have Mattered?

The answers underline the limitations of laws that aim to prevent this sort of crime by restricting access to firearms.

Jacob Sullum | 7.6.2022 3:50 PM

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell speaks at a press conference on June 14, 2022. | CNP/AdMedia/Newscom

Gun Control

The Bipartisan Senate Gun Control Bill Would Unjustly Deprive Americans of Their Second Amendment Rights

The legislation prohibits firearm sales based on juvenile records and subsidizes state laws that suspend gun rights without due process.

Jacob Sullum | 6.22.2022 4:20 PM

Sens. Christopher Murphy (D-Conn.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas), who led negotiations on a gun control package | Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom, Aaron Schwartz/CNP/SplashNews/Newscom

Gun Control

'Red Flag' Laws Require a Tricky Balance

If Congress decides to encourage them, it should not overlook the importance of due process protections.

Jacob Sullum | 6.15.2022 12:01 AM

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham at a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on March 25, 2022 | Ting Shen/pool via CNP/Picture Alliance/Consolidated News Photos/Newscom

Red Flag Laws

Bipartisan Support for Red Flag Laws Elides the Practical and Constitutional Issues They Raise

Because there is no reliable way to identify future mass shooters, it is inevitable that many innocent people will lose their Second Amendment rights.

Jacob Sullum | 6.1.2022 4:40 PM

Buffalo-shooting-scene-5-15-22-Newscom | Aaron Josefczyk/UPI/Newscom

Gun Control

Commonly Touted Policies Are Ill-Suited to Stopping Mass Shooters

These three gun controls failed in New York, and there is little reason to think they would work elsewhere.

Jacob Sullum | 5.25.2022 12:01 AM

Buffalo-shooting-aftermath-5-14-22-Newscom | Aaron Josefczyk/UPI/Newscom

New York

The Buffalo Massacre Illustrates the Inherent Limitations of 'Red Flag' Laws

Predicting violence is a lot harder than people claim in retrospect, and a wider net inevitably ensnares more innocent people.

Jacob Sullum | 5.18.2022 4:00 PM

Merrick-Garland-6-15-21-Newscom | Win McNamee/UPI/Newscom

Red Flag Laws

The Biden Administration's Model 'Red Flag' Law Belies the Justice Department's Avowed Commitment to Due Process

The Justice Department's proposal encourages states to take away people's Second Amendment rights based on little more than bare allegations.

Jacob Sullum | 6.21.2021 3:30 PM

zumaamericaseight510550 | Patrick Fallon/ZUMAPRESS/Newscom

Guns

Biden's Gun Schemes Illustrate the Foolishness of Firearms Regulations

Rules range from absurd to appalling without respect for civil liberties or basic logic.

J.D. Tuccille | 6.18.2021 7:00 AM

San-Jose-shooting-5-26-21-Newscom | Chine Nouvelle/Sipa/Newscom

Mass Shootings

Why Didn't California's 'Red Flag' Law Stop the San Jose Shooter?

Even when states authorize gun confiscation orders, identifying would-be mass shooters is a daunting challenge.

Jacob Sullum | 5.27.2021 3:05 PM

gun-red-flag-dreamstime | Lex Villena/Dreamstime

Mass Shootings

The Indianapolis Shooting Highlights the Shortcomings of 'Red Flag' Laws

Although police seized the perpetrator's shotgun when he was deemed suicidal, he was never identified as a potential murderer.

Jacob Sullum | 4.19.2021 12:45 PM

Joe-Biden-4-7-21-Newscom | Yuri Gripas/UPI/Newscom

Gun Control

Joe Biden Learns To Love Gun Control by Presidential Fiat

The president's unilateral restrictions are legally dubious and unlikely to "save lives."

Jacob Sullum | 4.8.2021 3:15 PM

demon-PickPik | PickPik

Gun Control

She Said He Said He Saw Demons. Then He Had to Give Up His Guns.

A bizarre Florida “red flag” case shows the importance of safeguards that protect people’s Second Amendment rights.

Jacob Sullum | 3.5.2020 8:30 AM

Ralph-Northam-VC-Flickr | VCU Capital News Service/Flickr

Gun Control

Virginia's Pending 'Red Flag' Law Includes Improvements but Still Falls Short of Due Process

The bill's requirements for "emergency" orders are loose, and it does not give respondents a right to a court-appointed lawyer.

Jacob Sullum | 1.29.2020 9:00 AM

CO-AG-Phil-Weiser | Colorado Attorney General's Office

Gun Control

Fiscal Analysis of Colorado's New 'Red Flag' Law Assumes Gun Confiscation Orders Will Be Granted 95% of the Time

Such a high approval rate reflects the threat these laws pose to due process and the Second Amendment.

Jacob Sullum | 1.3.2020 3:25 PM

Cuomo-signing-red-flag-bill-2-25-19 | Office of the Governor

Gun Control

New York's New 'Red Flag' Law Illustrates the Due Process Problems Posed by Gun Confiscation Orders

When it comes to deciding who should keep their Second Amendment rights, the deck is stacked against gun owners.

Jacob Sullum | 8.23.2019 2:05 PM

empty-holster-youtube | YouTube

Mass Shootings

Do These 21 Mass Shootings That Did Not Happen Show the Benefits of California's 'Red Flag' Law?

Only if you assume they would have happened in the absence of gun confiscation orders.

Jacob Sullum | 8.20.2019 5:05 PM

sipaphotosnine229943 | Jaap Arriens/Sipa USA/Newscom

Social Media

The Government Wants a 'Red Flag' Social Media Tool. That's a Terrible Idea.

The FBI is looking for companies to comb through social media posts and pinpoint possible threats ahead of time. Think of it like a meme-illiterate Facebook-stalking precog from Minority Report.

Andrea O'Sullivan | 8.20.2019 7:58 AM

Lindsey-Graham-Fox-News-8-12-19 | Fox News

Due Process

Lindsey Graham's Dishonest Defense of 'Red Flag' Laws

"The Second Amendment is not a suicide pact," the senator says, while glossing over the due process issues raised by gun confiscation orders.

Jacob Sullum | 8.14.2019 1:05 PM

reason-cuomo | Brock Miller / Splash News/Newscom

2nd Amendment

Trump Suggests 'Red Flag' Laws Be Used to Take CNN Anchor Chris Cuomo's Guns Away After Viral 'Fredo' Outburst

Do we want Trump in charge of deciding who’s too crazy to own a gun?

Christian Britschgi | 8.13.2019 12:00 PM

El-Paso-shooting-shrine-Newscom | Chine Nouvelle/Sipa/Newscom

Psychology/Psychiatry

The Puzzle of Identifying Future Mass Murderers Cannot Be Solved by Psychiatry, Background Checks, or Red Flag Laws

If "the notion that we can identify mass killers before they act" is a "fiction," the conventional policy responses to mass shootings are unlikely to be effective.

Jacob Sullum | 8.9.2019 2:30 PM

Trump-speech-8-5-19-WH | White House

Gun Control

'Red Flag' Laws Leave Gun Owners Defenseless

The Trump-endorsed response to mass shootings gives due process short shrift.

Jacob Sullum | 8.7.2019 12:01 AM

Zackari-Parrish-DCSO | Douglas County Sheriff's Office

Gun Control

Colorado's New 'Red Flag' Law Illustrates the Pitfalls of Disarming People Based on Their Future Behavior

The process for obtaining "extreme risk protection orders" that take away people's Second Amendment rights is rigged against gun owners from the outset.

Jacob Sullum | 4.29.2019 2:05 PM

Large image on homepages | Kreangkrai Indarodom/Dreamstime.com

Florida

Hundreds of Floridians Ordered to Surrender Guns Thanks to 'Red Flag' Law, Report Says

Critics say the "red flag" law is violating Floridians' constitutional rights.

Joe Setyon | 7.31.2018 11:00 AM

  • About
  • Browse Topics
  • Events
  • Staff
  • Jobs
  • Donate
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Media
  • Shop
  • Amazon
Reason FacebookReason TwitterReason InstagramReason TikTokReason YoutubeReason ItunesReason on FlipboardReason RSS

© 2023 Reason Foundation | Accessibility | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.