Landmark California gun seizure law takes effect 1 January but amid concerns

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Landmark California gun seizure law takes effect 1 January but amid concerns

Monica Lopez in Los Angeles, California
Thursday 31 December 2015 15.30 GMT

A California gun statute going into effect on 1 January gives the police or family members the option to petition the courts to seize the guns and ammunition of someone they think poses a threat, the first law of its kind in the country.

But the “gun violence restraining order” law, passed last year, has raised concerns from lawmakers and pro-gun groups about civil liberties and questions about how effective it will really be.

Modeled after firearms prohibitions in domestic violence restraining orders, the statute allows for law enforcement or “immediate family members” to ask a judge for a restraining order if they feel that someone is a danger to themselves or others. The order would also bar the person from purchasing a firearm by placing them on the state’s do-not-buy list.

Former California assemblywoman Nancy Skinner introduced the bill, AB 1014, in 2014, just two days after a 22-year-old man, Elliot Rodger, went on a murderous rampage in Isla Vista, California, killing six people and then himself.

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Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/dec/31/landmark-california-gun-seizure-law-takes-effect

[yeoman6987]

1. Glad they have to go to a judge to request

That should take the worry from pro second amendment supporters who may think you can just call anyone crazy and get their weapons confiscated. Now will the law work? Time will tell.

[deathrind]

2. Sounds reasonable.

Good to see a process being put in place to address this. Especially as more and more people find themselves in the role of caregivers for elderly family members suffering from the onset of cognitive deterioration.

[mwrguy]

3. I hope there's a 'rocket docket' set up for this,

and they stay busy as hell.

[Eleanors38]

4. When a relative seeks an order, is the subject of the proposed order...

...notified of the impending order, accorded a hearing, or is present at the time of the hearing (if any)?