Colorado’s ‘red flag’ law: Does it work in preventing gun violence?

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- In the aftermath of yet another round of mass shootings across America, we're asking local leaders about the effectiveness of the 2019 extreme risk protection order passed by state lawmakers -- also nicknamed the "red flag" law.

The law, which became effective in January 2020, allows relatives, household members and law enforcement to ask that a judge order the seizure of a gun owner's weapons if that owner is believed to present a risk to himself or others.

People who purchase or receive guns are also included in the law.

The person seeking the order must sign an affidavit under oath declaring that legitimate concerns exist surrounding a person who has access to a gun; the law was designed to reduce the possibility of a gun being used by someone who may have mental, emotional or behavioral issues.

Under the law, a judge must schedule a temporary hearing on the same day a request is filed or on the next business day after a filing; a second hearing must take place within 14 days afterward, in which a judge decides whether enough evidence exists to seize someone's guns.

If a judge approves an order be granted, the gun owner must surrender his or her weapons -- as well as their concealed-carry permit -- to law enforcement, a federally-licensed firearms dealer, outside relative or licensed owner of the guns if owned by someone else.

The order remains in effect for one year, during which time the involved gun owner can make a single request to have the order revoked; the person who requested the order can ask for an extension of it before the expiration date.

KRDO NewsChannel 13 is speaking Tuesday with State Sen. Paul Lundeen, R-Monument, and State Rep. Tony Exum, Sr., D-Colorado Springs.

Exum said that since the law was enacted, judges have approved five orders to seize guns in El Paso County.

Lundeen said that because Colorado also has laws passed in 2013 to limit the size of gun magazines and to expand background checks, a separate and more important issue is increasing school safety.

To that end, he supported a bill in the just-concluded legislative session that would have placed more school resource officers in schools, but he said that the bill did not pass; he also calls for more restricted-entry points at schools and increasing escape avenues.

El Paso County Sheriff Bill Elder and Pueblo County Sheriff Kirk Taylor were unavailable for comment on the matter Tuesday.