Target: Steven Dettelbach, Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Mass shootings are increasing in frequency, and it often feels impossible to keep up with them all. Hundreds of lives have been lost with even more sustaining injury from those taking personal frustrations out on the public from behind the barrel of a gun. Oftentimes, the perpetrators have a past that lays the foundation for these tragic events which leaves people asking if they can be avoided.
Red flag laws are parts of state legislature allowing police to confiscate firearms from anyone who commits violent acts. Florida has such laws and has removed guns from the hands of many fitting the profile of someone who may go on a killing spree in a public place. Since 2018, the state has acted more than 8,000 times to keep dangerous weapons away from violent people. If red flag laws do not prevent an immediate crime, they do create a telling record for someone who may pose a future risk and/or try to purchase a gun later.
Guidelines are not always clear on what crimes can lead to one’s firearms being taken; it generally is up the the judge handling the case. The recent shooting at a nightclub in Colorado potentially could have been avoided if the state’s red flag laws were carried out more effectively; the gunman had reportedly threatened his own mother with a bomb not even two years before his rampage, yet no action was taken relating to his rights of gun ownership. This creates a prime opportunity for the federal government to use its wealth of data on shootings and their perpetrators to advise states on how they can streamline red flag laws to work more universally.
Please sign the petition below to urge Director Dettelbach of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to support states in carrying out red flag law enforcement.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Director Dettelbach,
Gun violence is getting worse before it gets better. Mass shootings are becoming a regular fixture in the news with seemingly no regions immune from these terrible tragedies. Your administration appears to not have much to say on the matter, but some states have already had successful results related to gun laws that you can help get into the mainstream.
Red flag laws are working in some places. Florida has documented some heinous crimes in hopes to keep guns out of the hands of perpetrators. People and media on both ends of the political spectrum agree there are indicators based on behavior and criminal record that should dictate if a person’s right to bear arms should be suspended or revoked. Suspects in mass shootings, more times than not, have a history with violence. After the damage is done, we find ourselves asking: “How could this person have been able to legally purchase a firearm?”
The red flag system is not perfect. Not all participating states agree how it should be executed and what crimes are to be considered red flags. With your administration’s resources of national crime statistics, however, a more comprehensive system can be presented to states to sort out policy that works.
We urge you to look at the successes of red flag gun laws and help states prevent violent offenders from pulling the trigger.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: Dayton Police Department
The ONLY way that will EVER happen is every living soul on this planet will have to give up their p.o.s. guns. That is the ONLY answer. Nothing else.
THEY SHOULD BE LECTROCUTED, NO QUESTIONS ABOUT IT!
Let’s get rid of tnose abnormal beings by either prison for life or the electric chair!
Arms should only be sold through a government agency!
Did you ever try to give a gun into the hands of a chimpanzee? If so, what did happen?
Then why one might expect that human beings should behave differently?