Two more young people are dead from another school shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School in Washington this week. In California we had a mass near-school shooting in Isla Vista only recently. But there is a new law in California that can help us prevent more shootings like those that took place in recent years and it is critically important that all Californians be aware of this law and how it works. Nancy Skinner and Williams’ Assembly Bill 1014 was signed by Governor Brown just a few weeks ago. It gives us the ability to prevent a psychologically unstable person from killing others or themselves by removing guns from their possession for as long as necessary. AB1014 allows anyone to seek a restraining order to remove firearms from a person who appears to be a threat to himself or others. We need to educate our networks about the new law so that parents, counselors, teachers, and friends of those who possess guns and are seemingly mentally ill will start using it.
Over 1,000 people a day are directly affected by gun violence in the United States. 87 people a day are killed by homicide, suicide, or by an unintentional shooting. Hundreds more are shot and injured, or are victims of assault and armed robbery.
October was Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and a time to remember that more than two-thirds of those murdered by their spouses between 1980 and 2008 were killed with guns. By implementing smart gun laws, we can reduce the number of domestic violence incidents that end in firearm-related deaths or injuries.
The new California bill can save many lives. It can affect you if you are a parent or friend worried about a young person, if you are someone feeling that your own mental illness, fear, or aggression are causing you to have thoughts about harming others or yourself.
In California, the law was inspired by the Isla Vista killings, in which a 22 year-old man, Elliot Rodger, killed six people and himself. His parents had tried over and over to seek help for their son. His mother had noticed that he was becoming more agitated and was making threats of violence. Sheriff’s deputies did not check on his gun ownership. The man himself later stated that if they had checked his room, they might have found his guns. The new law will empower both parents and law enforcement officials to take action to remove guns from dangerous individuals. Often family members or law enforcement do realize the danger ahead of time, and this would enable them to prevent the slaughter.
Many gun owners claim that laws like AB 1014 will not reduce school shootings and that the main issue to deal with is mental illness, not gun ownership. However, statistics show that gun ownership plays a huge role in determining who perpetrates gun violence. A 2001 UC San Diego study looked specifically at 34 adolescent mass murderers, all male. 70 percent were described as loners, 61.5 percent had problems with substance abuse, 48 percent had preoccupations with weapons, and 43.5 percent had been victims of bullying. Only 23 percent had a documented psychiatric history of any kind―which means three out of four did not. But all carried out their crimes with guns. With AB 1014, even those who do not have a history of documented mental illness can be prevented from harming others as those who know the person can now take effective actions to prevent gun violence.
AB1014 is a balanced law. It provides protections for the rights of the person against whom the restraining order is sought. The person seeking the restraining order must sign an affidavit under oath. There must be a hearing within two weeks, at which the gun owner could defend himself. And the restraining order only lasts for a year. If necessary, after that, the process could begin again.
As long as guns are so widely available, and at the same time our mental health system is so porous, there are going to be situations where someone with guns shows signs of using them irrationally, perhaps even planning a massacre. Up to now, parents who saw a danger looming, even parents who called the police to report the danger, were powerless, and so were the police. But this new law makes it possible to take action, and prevent a tragedy. Hopefully word will spread, in the mental health community, and among friends and relatives of those who are struggling to maintain their hold on reality.
Laws similar to AB1014 have been passed in three other states, and New York and Washington DC are considering them too. The rights of gun owners are not compromised by our being vigilant and using our awareness of danger to prevent gun violence. Our legislature and governor have given us this new tool, and now it is up to us to use it. Your life and those of your loved ones may depend on it.
Jane Hirsch is a member of the Gun Violence Prevention Working Group of the National Council of Jewish Women/Los Angeles.
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