Gun Safety Coalition Launches Campaign to Put Red Flag Law on Maine Ballot

Gun safety advocates in the state of Maine have launched a petition to put a so-called “red flag” law on the ballot after legislative efforts following the Lewiston shooting failed.

The Maine Gun Safety Coalition and its allies announced their campaign Thursday, following the October 2023 mass shooting that left 18 people dead and the release of a state commission report last month that found law enforcement could have done more to confiscate the shooter's weapons.

Last spring, lawmakers considered passing a red flag bill that would give family members, in addition to police, the ability to deny a person in crisis access to guns without a psychiatric evaluation. The proposal made it through committee but was never put to a vote in the House or Senate.

“After the tragedy in Lewiston last year, people in communities across Maine have been wondering what could have been done differently,” said Nacole Palmer, executive director of the Maine Gun Safety Coalition, in a statement. “The Lewiston report laid bare the inadequacies of the half-hearted measures lawmakers passed in 2019. The commission has done its part, and now the rest is up to us. It's time to protect Maine's schools and communities with an extreme risk protection law.

In 2019, lawmakers passed Maine's existing “yellow flag” law, which requires law enforcement to take someone into protective custody and have them undergo a psychiatric evaluation before a court can sign an order restricting that person's access to guns because they pose a threat to themselves or others.

Red flag proposals typically do not require a psychiatric evaluation, but family members or police must submit a request and affidavit outlining concerns about the person's access to guns.

This story will be updated.

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