Judy Amabile has a crumpled sleeping bag laid out on the porch of her bright, beautiful home in downtown Boulder, Colorado.
鈥淢y son isn鈥檛 supposed to come in the house when he鈥檚 been drinking. That鈥檚 why we have this sleeping bag out here,鈥� she explained. 鈥淎nybody else would look at that and think uh, what? But for us it鈥檚 like鈥hat鈥檚 life.鈥�
Life with Amabile鈥檚 son, 26, can be a struggle; the problem isn鈥檛 only alcohol abuse. He has been diagnosed with depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder, she says, so many diagnoses that she just isn鈥檛 sure what鈥檚 wrong.
鈥淎 year and half ago, he started expressing this idea that he would like to get a gun and kill himself with it,鈥� Amabile said.
At Amabile鈥檚 request, we agreed not to use her son鈥檚 name in this story, out of concern for his well-being.
Because of her son鈥檚 condition, Amabile is pushing for the Colorado legislature to pass an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) bill this session. , also known as red flag laws, vary across states but, generally, allow family members and law enforcement to petition a judge for an order that allows the temporary removal of firearms from a person who is exhibiting potential dangerous behavior. These orders often also prohibit them from buying new guns.
After the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, last year, passed some version of an extreme risk law. Now, have some version of a law that prevents people in crisis from accessing guns.
While this kind of legislation usually follows a high profile shooting, experts say extreme risk laws are most often used for suicide prevention.
published in the journal Psychiatric Services found that these laws in Indiana and Connecticut may have prevented hundreds of firearm suicides, though suicides by other methods did increase.
In Colorado, House democrats are planning to introduce an ERPO bill during this year鈥檚 legislative session.
鈥榃e Wept With Fear鈥�
An extreme risk protection order is not just theory, for Amabile. Months ago, Amabile noticed a charge from a local gun shop on her son鈥檚 debit card statement. When she called, the shop explained that the charge was equal to the cost of a background check. Her son has just threatened to hurt himself. Amabile and her ex-husband were so concerned, they went to the gun store to plead with the owner.
鈥淲e wept with fear about how close he was to killing himself,鈥� Amabile said. 鈥淲e asked the guy 鈥楶lease, please don鈥檛 sell him this gun.'鈥�
He agreed.
Although that immediate crisis was averted, Amabile wants more options for keeping a gun out of her son鈥檚 hands. He would be prohibited if he were convicted of a felony or adjudicated 鈥� .鈥� Despite her son鈥檚 mental health issues, Amabile has not found an appropriate way to prohibit him from buying a gun.
Amabile鈥檚 son has been hospitalized multiple times. He has also attempted suicide using other, non-firearm methods and survived. That鈥檚 why she sees an ERPO bill as particularly important.
鈥淏ecause if he succeed in getting a gun, and he attempted suicide with a gun, the chances that he would be successful are so much higher,鈥� she said. 鈥� .鈥�
Extreme Risk Law In Action
Connecticut enacted an extreme risk-type law in 1999. State that the measure is used in all kinds of situations: violent threats against school officials, coworkers, wives, girlfriends, children and especially in cases of self-harm. In the first ten years the law was in place, the complaint that initiated the process focused on the risk of suicide.
Detective Anthony Demonte, a police detective with the Wethersfield Connecticut Police Department deals with the state鈥檚 mostly in situations related to domestic violence and suicide.
Imagine, he says, an elderly man, bleeding from both wrists, not making any sense, living in a house in disarray.
鈥淭his person can鈥檛 take care of themselves and now there鈥檚 evidence they鈥檝e hurt themselves,鈥� Demonte said.
If Demonte was to find that the man had guns registered to him, Demonte would try to get a risk warrant and remove them.
鈥淚n the example that I gave, they could hurt themselves, they could hurt others,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f we have the opportunity to take that out of the equation, at least we can do that.鈥�
For some, however, the removal process is problematic. An ERPO bill died in the Colorado legislature last year, in part, because of concerns about the rights of gun owners and due process under the law. One state senator but that taking guns away from people with no proof or due process was 鈥� a very slippery slope.鈥�
Generally, soon after an ERPO is issued, the individual in question and can ask for their guns back. The judge can then extend the temporary order, or deny it.
Balancing Risks And Rights
Judy Amabile says friends said the same thing to her recently.
鈥溾�榊ou know, they鈥檙e gonna start to regulate this and regulate that,'鈥� Amabile said friends told her, 鈥溾�榠t鈥檚 a slippery slope of getting gun rights taken away, generally.鈥� I don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 a slippery slope. I think this is a very discreet piece of legislation that will actually, potentially save lives.鈥�
For Amabile , any potential risks far outweigh the benefits.
鈥淲hy does your right to have a firearm trump somebody else鈥檚 right to be protected from themselves in a moment of crisis? Amabile asked. 鈥淲hose rights are more important?鈥�
In Colorado, a state with and a strong history of gun ownership, this is one of the key questions that will be up for debate this legislative session.
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