Say NO to dangerous Red Flag Laws. Keep Maine Safe.
- Maine has long been one of the safest States in the Nation. We don’t need people from other states, with higher crime rates, telling us how to live.
- Red Flag Laws allow – without the person’s prior knowledge and with very little evidence – someone’s firearms to be removed based on a petition by their family members (including former spouses or partners), household members or law enforcement.
Say NO to Guilty Until Proven Innocent
- Red Flag laws allow the removal of firearms without trial.
- National statistics show nearly 80% of those who have their firearms removed by a Red Flag Order have never committed a crime.
- In other states, Red Flag or “Extreme Risk Protection Orders” are granted 97% of the time based on hearsay and a low standard of evidence. To get your firearms back, however, you must provide a heavy burden of evidence to prove you aren’t a threat. This often comes at great cost (hiring an attorney, missing work, tarnished reputation).
- Other states have also seen Red Flag laws used as retaliation for differing beliefs, and used by domestic abusers to disarm their victims.
Say no to falling through the cracks
- Red Flag Laws do nothing to help the person whose firearms have been removed. There are no mental health evaluations, no restraining orders, no protection offered for the people the person is accused of being a potential threat to.
Red Flag Laws can cause:
- A suicidal person to be left with a continued determination to take their own life and helpless.
- A retaliatory event against their accuser.
- Higher risk to the public from a person who has not been jailed or restrained, but instead has just had their property taken without notice, and is now potentially more dangerous than ever.
Say NO to Removal of Due Process
Under Red Flag Laws, law enforcement can be directed to show up at our homes without notice to remove our property. This has resulted in dangerous or even deadly altercations in other states that already have Red Flag Laws.
SAY NO TO ENDANGERING LAW ENFORCEMENT
Our law enforcement officers are busy protecting our communities. This law would force them to take time away from finding actual criminals and force them to raid the homes of people who may have never even committed a crime.
Say NO to Outside money
- Our Maine heritage is one of independence, high rates of legal firearms ownership, and the belief that you are innocent until proven guilty-not the other way around.
- Out of state wealthy elites are spending millions of dollars in our state to influence our way of life. We need to enforce the laws we already have on the books and not spend hours of time confiscating the guns of a person who “might” commit a crime in the future.