U.S. Senator Marco Rubio introduced the “Extreme Risk Protection Order and Violence Prevention Act” in 2018 right after the terrible shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High Shooting (Parkland, FL). Fast forward to 2021 and here we are again.
Let's take a close look at this bill. If you would like to read the full text, you can click one of the following two links: [HTML] or [PDF].
Summary: A bill to provide family members of an individual who they fear is a danger to himself, herself, or others, or law enforcement, with new tools to prevent gun violence.
Co-Sponsors of this bill:
Angus King [I-ME] (202) 224-5344
John "Jack" Reed [D-RI] (202) 224-4642
Rick Scott [R-FL] (202) 224-5274
This bill is referring to
The Unpacking
"Extreme Risk Protection Order" sounds pretty good and one would think – why not, and here is WHY NOT.
Should this bill pass, it does not create a federal red flag law in the sense that a federal agency could petition a court to grant a red flag order. What it does, encourages individual states to do so and gives them some tools to successfully implement said red flag laws. 34 U.S. Code § 10228 prohibits the federal government (with some exceptions) to force states to enact legislation that does not come from the State legislator.
So the RINOS of Florida thought if we would pass a bill that would basically layout the plan, each State can come and simply copy and paste this piece of legislation and pass it through their own legislative process.
What would happen if their proposed legislation would actually pass?
A person qualified by this legislation could simply go to court and convince a judge that you are crazy.
Once the Protection Order is granted, the police have the right and responsibility to enter your property and take away any and all firearms and ammunition in your house or on your property. You have no legal recourse to this action. This violates your Fourth Amendment. Now, one may argue that it says in the 4th Amendment "...shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause,..." and the protection order is more or less a warrant. But what about your Fifth Amendment Right and your Sixth Amendment right and your Fourteenth Amendment right? The Fifth Amendment and the Fourteenth Amendment protect you from being deprived of your private property without due process. What is due process? Part of due process is to face your accuser and another part is to be judge by an impartial jury (stated in the Sixth Amendment).
You will get a hearing with 14 days of the date the petition was filed, but your right, to protect yourself, your family, and your property, has already been canceled. Your firearms and ammunition have already been removed at this point. Should the judge decide the petition is justified the government has now 12 months to figure out what to do and during these 12 months your Second Amendment continues to be canceled.
Should the investigation turn out in your favor and your rights are restored, now you have to start fighting to get your firearms back. If the government refuses to return your private property you will have to hire another attorney to sue the government for your property.
Not everyone who is served with a Protection Order will get a chance to fight this unconstitutional procedure. In the case of a Maryland man, was served the Protection Order following execution by local police.
So you see that this bill S. 292 is a bigger problem than what it may seem on the surface.
Find Your Representative and Senators
To find your Representatives in the house, click here.
To find your Senators, click here.
To read more on s. 292 please click here. [PDF]