Lawmakers hear suggestions for how to bolster New Mexico’s ‘Red Flag Law’
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Should New Mexico do more to take guns away from people who are a risk to themselves or others? Lawmakers rejected a tougher proposal earlier this year, but ahead of a 60-day session, there are new ideas for how to change the law.
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The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) is one of the leading agencies in the state that has enforced the state’s “Red Flag Law.” Representatives from the department including Chief Harold Medina spent Wednesday morning telling lawmakers about the challenges they’ve encountered.
New Mexico’s Extreme Risk Firearm Protection order, otherwise known as “ERFPO,” has been on the books since 2020; and while some departments like APD use the law: “We have encountered some challenges with this law that we’ve attempted to work through,” said Detective Jeff Jones with the Crisis Intervention Unit (CIU) with APD.
There are voices across the board who think the law could be stronger. “When I talk to the community, I tell them that ERFPO is like your grandma’s car that she gave you for graduation. You get from here to there but the windows don’t work, the locks don’t work; we can make it better,” said Sheila Lewis, J.D, Extreme Risk Protection Order trainer and consultant.
Just four months away from a new legislative session, lawmakers spent Wednesday hearing how the state’s “Red Flag Law” is being used. “Our CIU unit probably has issued more of these orders than the rest of the state combined in terms of making sure we’re doing everything to protect victims within the state of New Mexico,” Medina said.
The current law allows police or prosecutors to petition a judge to temporarily remove guns from the home of someone thought to be a danger to themselves or others for up to a year. APD has executed those orders roughly 50 times since 2022. Detectives gave two case examples of when this order worked successfully, including one man who had threatened to kill himself and his neighbors.
“An individual disclosed threats to his mother where he had a desire to kill his neighbors and then complete suicide with a firearm. During my investigation, I found this person had access to 13 firearms including 11 high-powered rifles and two handguns,” said Detective Coty Maxwell with the CIU with APD.
However, there have been other examples in recent days where other agencies are accused of dropping the ball: the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) is named in a lawsuit alleging the department should have taken guns away under the “Red Flag Law” from a man who shot a girl and her cousin, then turned the gun on himself.
Some argue there needs to be more people who can file Red Flag petitions. “We need to make sure that the list of reporting parties reflects what we need: that is, law enforcement and some kind of mental health or health care provision has to be in there,” Lewis said.
New Mexico State Police are advocating for permission to get search warrants if people are accused of withholding guns from being collected. Others want the ability for police to seize guns immediately once the order is granted, rather than waiting through the current 48-hour window for people to turn in their guns. Other suggestions included clarifying whether police should also collect ammunition, and to track firearms once they are in a law enforcement agency’s possession.
“It’s a great law, we just need to improve it,” Lewis said.
A lot of the proposed changes were part of House Bill 27 last year, but that bill died in committee despite having support from the governor.
Since the law went into effect, 117 ERFPOs have been granted statewide. So far this year, more than 50 have been filed.
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