Maine’s Democrat Governor Explains Why She’s Voting Against ‘Red Flag’ Referendum

When Maine voters head to the polls a little more than a month from now, one of the questions on their ballot will be about creating a “red flag” law for the state. Republican lawmakers tried to get a competing measure on the ballot, but were stymied by their Democrat counterparts, who wouldn’t even hold a public hearing on the “red flag” proposal, as required by the state constitution, until groups like the NRA and Sportsmen’s Alliance of Maine threatened a lawsuit. 

Maine already has a “yellow flag” law in place that offers far more due process protections than the proposed Extreme Risk Protection Order, including an evaluation by a mental health professional. Oddly, that’s not one of the reasons that Democratic Gov. Janet Mills offers in her new column explaining why she’s voting against the “red flag” measure, and why she’s urging voters across the state to do the same. 

Mills notes that, unlike the “yellow flag” law already in place, the “red flag” proposal would allow “a family or household member” to initiate the gun confiscation process. Mills says she can understand why that sounds appealing, but argues there are good reasons why law enforcement should be the entity filing these petitions. 

First, involving law enforcement takes the burden off you as a family member for “turning in” someone who’s close to you. We don’t want you in the middle of a potentially dangerous situation. Question 2, on the other hand, would do exactly that, putting the burden of pursuing an order on your shoulders and putting you on the front line of a dangerous situation, which risks your safety.

Second, law enforcement can access more information and they know the court system, which means they can navigate it more easily and successfully remove weapons. Question 2 would ask you to try to navigate that system on your own. That’s a complicated, confusing and intimidating thing to have to do by yourself. And I don’t want to see anyone walk away from the process because they’re overwhelmed, can’t figure it out or feel intimidated. That just means weapons might remain in the hands of dangerous people.

Third, involving law enforcement provides another important level of due process that strengthens the law’s constitutionality. Question 2 would lower that legal standard and diminish the protective buffer of the police, which puts the law at greater risk of being struck down.

Now, these obviously aren’t the arguments that most Second Amendment activists would make, but the issue before voters isn’t whether to reject both the “yellow flag” law and the “red flag” proposal. It’s whether or not to ditch the current statute and replace it with one that offers fewer due process safeguards. 

To that end, Mills says the “red flag” initiative would make the public less safe than the law that’s currently in place.

As a constitutional matter, Question 2 is suspect. As a practical matter, it is confusing, incompatible with our current law and puts both police and civilians in greater danger. Here’s the bottom line for me, and I say this as someone with decades of experience as a former private attorney, district attorney, attorney general and now, as governor: if there is a potentially dangerous situation, I want the police involved as soon as possible because it’s their responsibility — not yours — to deal with dangerous people.

I would add that a decision about someone’s dangerousness should also involve mental health professionals, not just a judge. Under the “yellow flag” law, individuals who are deemed a danger to themselves or others have access to mental health treatment. There’s no mental health component whatsoever under the “red flag” proposal, however. If a judge says someone is dangerous, their guns can be taken, but the individual in question is left with unfettered access to knives, gasoline, matches, or anything else they might use to harm themselves or others.

For 2A voters in Maine, this choice between a “yellow flag” law and a “red flag” law comes down to the lesser of two evils. But voting “no” also lets the Democrats who control the state legislature know that Mainers don’t appreciate their duplicitous efforts to deny voters a real choice about how to address those in crisis, and that’s a message liberal lawmakers definitely ned to hear.  

Editor’s Note: The Democrat Party has never been less popular as voters reject its anti-2A agenda.

Help us continue exposing Democrats’ plans to lead America down a dangerous path. Join Bearing Arms VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.