“Red flag” laws designed to give authorities the power to take guns away from people who threaten to kill are rarely being used across America, even in some states with extremely high rates of gun violence and deaths, a new analysis shows. Using data on the number of the gun-surrender orders issued in 19 states and the District of Columbia, the Associated Press found that just 15,049 orders were issued since 2020—fewer than 10 per 100,000 residents. In Chicago, where 1,800 deaths have resulted from 8,500 shootings since 2020, the laws were used just four times. In New Mexico, which saw 600 gun killings in the same period, red-flag orders were issued just 12 times. It’s thought that a lack of awareness around the laws and an outright resistance to enforce the rules by some authorities account for the alarming trend.
