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Florida passed one of the first Red Flag laws after the Parkland shooting. As is always the case, no one stopped to think if this was actually a good idea, or would even pass constitutional muster. The idea is to get guns out of the hands of dangerous people at least until things could be sorted out. The problem is that the person targeted has absolutely no say in the matter. A Red Flag notice is issued and his rights end, period. Do you think I\u2019m kidding? Here\u2019s one case in Florida that is going to blow up in the faces of the legislature from TownHall<\/b><\/a>:<\/p>\n Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs), commonly referred to as “red flag laws,” have been at the forefront of the gun control debate. The idea is simple: if a person is deemed mentally unstable, and a risk to themselves or others, he or she can be stripped of their firearms.<\/b><\/p>\n Most people would think that this isn\u2019t a bad idea. However, the reality is quite a bit different if a mistake is made.<\/p>\n Typically, family members, doctors and law enforcement have the power to petition a judge to deem the gun owner mentally unfit to own a firearm, at least for the time being. Some states, like Florida, have already implemented these laws. While they sound great on paper, they have a number of practicality issues. The biggest one is the lack of due process.<\/b><\/p>\n No kidding. It gets better. If you resist, they will jail or kill you.<\/p>\n Just last week, a man in Florida had his firearms confiscated simply because he had the same name as a criminal. That’s right. A man was stripped of his Second Amendment right…because the police failed to differentiate a law-abiding citizen with a thug.<\/b><\/p>\n And that just killed the Florida law. A totally innocent man had not just his 2nd<\/sup> Amendment rights stripped, but essentially ALL of them, all due to a case of mistaken identity, and he has no way to get this corrected. Here\u2019s how this all happened.<\/p>\n According to Ammoland, Jonathan Carpenter received a certified letter from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services saying his concealed handgun permit had been suspended for “acts of domestic violence or acts of repeat violations.” <\/b><\/p>\n This, apparently caught Mr. Carpenter by surprise, since he had never done these things. But as far as the gun grabbers are concerned, you are guilty until proven innocent.<\/p>\n Carpenter was forced to go to the Osceola County clerk’s office to have a form filled out stating he wasn’t the person law enforcement was looking for. At that point, the clerk instructed Carpenter to speak with the sheriff’s office. <\/b><\/p>\n I\u2019m sure he just assumed it was going to be \u201cMy apologies sir, obviously this was an error. We will call in and get this corrected right away. Yeah, fat chance.<\/p>\n Even though it was evident they had the wrong man, Carpenter was forced to hand over his firearms. There was no hearing or any kind of court proceeding. <\/b><\/p>\n \u201cThe last thing on my mind was me having to turn over my gun,\u201d Carpenter told AmmoLand. \u201cI was upset when the Sheriff told me that I need to surrender my gun before any due process.\u201d <\/b><\/p>\n Here’s where things get even more ridiculous.<\/strong><\/p>\n Carpenter’s firearms had to remain in police custody until the plaintiff can say, in court, that he’s not the man that she filed a complaint against. He’d then have to petition the court to get his firearms back…and <\/b>he <\/b><\/em>would have to bear the cost. Carpenter will get his day in court later this month.<\/b><\/p>\n Since Mr. Carpenter doesn\u2019t even come close to matching the description of the actual target of the order it should take the judge exactly 5 minutes to vacate it and order the return of his firearms and carry permit. However, this doesn\u2019t fix the issue, and I have a strong suspicion that Mr. Carpenter\u2019s case is going to be taken up by the NRA or some other group to hammer the Florida Red Flag law into the grave of bad laws.<\/p>\n Not only were Mr. Carpenter\u2019s 2nd<\/sup> Amendment rights violated, his right of due process was violated, and if he had refused to bring in his guns, his 4th<\/sup> Amendment rights would have been trashed as well. In this country, you are presumed innocent until PROVEN guilty. Thanks to those morons in Florida and elsewhere, you are guilty until proven innocent.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n