Dion community protection order receives public hearing

AUGUSTA — A bill from Sen. Mark Dion, D-Portland to increase the identification of high-risk individuals and increase the capacity of communities to address these risks received a public hearing on Tuesday before the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee.

LD 1884, “An Act To Create a Community Protection Order To Allow Courts To Prevent High-risk Individuals from Possessing Firearms,” offers an avenue for law enforcement or concerned individuals to petition the courts to temporarily remove weapons from a high-risk individual, who potentially poses a threat to others or themselves. This proposed legislations comes in response to recent school shootings and a heated debate about gun violence across the state and country.

“No law provides absolution protection but that should not deter us from taking reasonable steps to address potential threats to our collective safety,” said Sen. Dion. “This order presents the Legislature with an opportunity to advance the public safety in a manner that is both reasonable and compatible with the principle of self-protection that underscores the rationale of our state constitutional right to bear arms.”

This community protection order allows the court to temporarily remove weapons from high-risk individuals demonstrating a clear and consistent pattern of concerning behavior put themselves at risk or others. After 21 days, the individual would appear in court for a hearing. The order is designed to ensure that temporary removal of weapons would be directed and vetted solely by the court.

“Responsible gun ownership is also about making sure we keep guns out of unsafe hands,” Sen. Dion. “This bill provides an important pathway to de-escalate concerning behavior of a high-risk individual and intervene before a tragedy occurs.”

LD 1884 awaits further action in the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee.

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