A state law enacted to prevent gun violence, mass shootings and suicides that allows the public to petition the court to remove guns from the home of someone deemed violent or mentally ill has been in effect since 2016. But usage locally is sparse.
Six years later, in 2022, 66 Gun Violence Restraining Orders (GVROs) were granted in Los Angeles County, a population of 10 million. Of those, 65 were issued to law enforcement, such as the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, while just one was requested from a member of the public.
“These tools are worthless if people don’t know about them or if they are afraid to use them,” said Mia Livas Porter, a volunteer with Moms Demand Action who spoke at a press conference in front of the Hall of Administration on Tuesday, Aug. 8.
Concerned about the underutilization of these restraining orders by the public, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday launched a public awareness campaign to educate family members, neighbors, school officials and the general public about this legal tool.
Part of the effort includes a new multi-language webpage from the county Office of Violence Prevention that can be found at www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/ovp/GVROs.htm. It explains GVROs, who can file for them, with videos on how to file and a list of legal aid organizations that can assist. Also, the webpage includes information about possible warning signs for both suicide and any potential mass violence attacks.
If an order is granted, firearms are temporarily removed from an individual or their home if the person is determined by the court to be a threat to others or themselves. A GVRO also prevents the individual from purchasing firearms and ammunition from 21 days to up to five years.
“The vast majority of our residents don’t know that GRVOs are an option,” Hahn said. The laws, also known as “red flag laws,” have been enacted by other states in the wake of mass shootings. Many times, the shooter…
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