The Trump administration House is considering using restraining orders to take guns away from people considered dangerous, two people familiar with the matter said.
Under extreme risk protection orders, firearms can be confiscated from people found to be at risk.
The administration is studying an Indiana version of such a law, and is also considering other measures, according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
At the White House Thursday, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi described to President Donald Trump similar efforts in her state to allow law enforcement agencies to seize firearms from people deemed to be a danger to themselves or others.
“Good,” Trump responded.
At a Florida town hall on CNN Wednesday, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said he supported restraining orders.
Some gun rights groups have embraced the idea because it would not impose new regulations on firearms themselves.
California, Connecticut, Indiana, Oregon and Washington have laws that allow authorities to temporarily take weapons away from people believed to be a danger to themselves or others. Anyone subject to such an order would not be allowed to buy or otherwise obtain more guns while the order was in effect.
The Trump administration is looking at encouraging states to enact the legislation, possibly by provide grants as a reward to states that adopt the idea, one of the people said.
Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah said Thursday that the White House was looking at such laws. “I think some states have had these red-flag laws, for example, that remove firearms after you go to a judge for potentially dangerous individuals. That’s something that’s being done right now in a variety of states, right? They have due process rights for these individuals. It seems to be working in certain areas. That’s something that we’re looking at and other places we’re looking at,” Shah said.
The proposal came as the White House has been casting about for a response to widespread demands for action, including new gun laws, after the Feb. 14 shootings in a Parkland, Fla., high school in which 17 people died.
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