Lance Orozco | KCLU
The proposal would help states add laws which would reduce access to weapons for people who might harm themselves, or others.
The string of recent mass shootings has brought new attention to the issue of gun violence. Two Tri-Counties legislators are among the co-authors of a bill intended to provide more support for programs to keep guns out of the hands of potentially dangerous people.
The congressional legislation would create a new federal grant program for states to establish what are known as red flag laws. The laws allow people who feel that a member of their family might hurt themselves, or others to get a court order which bans them from buying guns.
19 states, and the District of Columbia currently have red flag laws. California is one of them.
Democratic Congressman Salud Carbajal of Santa Barbara, and Democratic Congresswoman Julia Brownley of Westlake Village are among the co-sponsors of the legislation.
It’s an issue which hits home in the Tri-Counties, which has had a number of mass shootings. They inclue the 2018 Borderline Bar and Grill attack in Thousand Oaks, which left 12 people dead.
This story was originally published by the KCLU on February 3, 2023.
Issues: 118th Congress, Gun Safety, Gun Violence Prevention