'Red Flag' laws are about seizing
guns, not protecting citizens
By Jonathan Hoffman. August 25th, 2019
The following column is the opinion and analysis of the writer.
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey is very enthusiastic about enacting some type of "red flag" law. He was quoted in the Arizona Capitol Times as saying, "I think the STOP plan -- the Severe Threat Order of Protection -- is the crown jewel of our safe schools plan," and, "It's the one tool that could have eliminated the mass shootings that have happened in other places in the country."
Seventeen states have red-flag laws, passed with the intent to keep firearms out of the hands of a person whom a judge determines to be a danger to himself or others.
The procedure is basically the same in all states: A petition is presented to a judge, who may then issue an ex parte order to seize a person's firearms and hold them until a hearing is held, in which the owner of the firearms argues for their return.
The judge issues a final order to either return the firearms to their owner or to keep them for a certain time period. The states do, however, vary somewhat as to the standard of evidence and who can bring the petition.
........ 
It is worth noting that 'ex parte' is "fancy Latin for: The judge only hears one side of the story, it is not your side, and you may not even know about it until after the fact." This is very dangerous and could potentially result in a 'no knock' raid to seize firearms, with all the risks which that might entail as rights become non existent.
