BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — You might remember a lot of talk about the Red Flag Law in New York State. It originated in 2019, but really came to our community's attention the days after the mass shooting on May 14, 2022.
It's a way to flag someone who may be a threat to our community, a civil proceeding that a judge must approve, not criminal.
Our7 News I-Team asked questions for you: was the Tops shooter flagged? Is there a list of red-flagged people? Is there a database for these red flag orders?
The answer to that last question was no. But that database now exists, unveiled by New York State Courts in June 2023. Since then, 7 News Reporter Taylor Epps has been looking into the data to find out if this law is doing its job.
It's a complicated process with many steps and implications for you and our community as a whole.
So we gathered some expert voices to break it down:
- Richard Lundberg, Detective with the Erie County Sheriff's Office
- John Flynn, Erie County District Attorney
- David Pucino, Legal Director and Deputy Chief Counsel, Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence
- Ava Thomas, Director of Operations, Family Justice Center
The Detective
It's a lot of long nights and paperwork for Detective Richard Lundberg. He's on the Erie County Sheriff's Office's new Behavioral Threat Assessment Team.
"To do these cases you have to find out where this person is on their path to violence," said Lundberg.
Have they made a plan? Are they preparing to carry out an act of violence? If so, he and his team can wave a red flag, also known as an Emergency Risk Protection Order (ERPO).
If approved by a judge, Lundberg and his team can take weapons away from people they see as a threat to our community.
They've had 85 cases since October 2022, seizing 116 firearms.
"We've filled an important gap, especially since the tops shooting on May 14," said Lundberg.
The BTA team was formed shortly after. And it's not just them, law enforcement agencies statewide are using these red flag orders more often.
Of the 85 cases locally, 21 involved schools.
"Thanks to students, faculty, parents, reporting the behavior, we were able to intervene, secure firearms," said Lundberg.
He says it's also helped prevent suicides. But he stressed it's not just about taking the guns, but also making sure people get the help they need.
"It's a very delicate balance between looking at someone's behavior and also looking at their civil liberties," said Lundberg.
The District Attorney
Erie County District Attorney John Flynn says we're in a much better place than we were before May 14th.
But the system isn't perfect.
"To tell you the truth because in looking at the numbers myself, I'm not sure how accurate the data is," said Flynn.
In some cases, some of the numbers show more red flags ordered than there are applications.
Erie County Sheriff's Office tells 7 News the site shows way more orders than they've actually filed.
He also still can't see the names on these lists. And once after one year, the order expires and then those records are as good as gone.
"Once a year comes by, it's sealed now and now no one has the ability to look at it at all," said Flynn.
But he says there's momentum here to stay on top of.
"If we keep this up and we keep doing our due diligence, I'm hopeful that this will prevent another mass shooting, God willing," said Flynn.
The National Gun Violence Expert
Let's take a wider look at things. The May 14th shooting got national attention, including from David Pucino, Legal Director at the Giffords Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
"The more we learned about the shooter, the more it seemed there was a process failure that had taken place, that information was out there and could've been known," said Pucino.
He says red flag laws were underutilized, but many states are doing a better job using them.
"I think we'll see the benefit of lives saved, frankly in the years to come," said Pucino.
Director of Ops at the Local Family Justice Center
So what's the impact here on our community?
"Any time that we can keep weapons out of abusers hands, it's by default keeping survivors safe," said Ava Thomas, from the Family Justice Center.
Thomas says this is another tool they can use to prevent domestic violence. She's not shocked to see the number of orders rise.
"I think it's a long time coming for this to be pushed out into the public and really be put on display as this is an avenue to help protect people," said Thomas.
