Measure Title:   RELATING TO MENTAL HEALTH.
Report Title:   Mental Health; Gun Control
Description:   Provides for a court-based relief program for persons federally prohibited from owning a firearm based on a finding of mental illness. Requires the courts to provide information relating to involuntary civil commitments to the Hawaii criminal justice data center to disclose to the national instant criminal background check system database and to law enforcement for gun control purposes.
Companion:   
Package:   None
Current Referral:
Introducer(s):   HEE

1/16/14 SB2247: Passed First Reading.
16 January 2014, 3:00 am

1/16/14 SB2247: Senate Status Update

Source: SB2247 Status Feed

1/16/14 SB2247: Introduced.
16 January 2014, 3:00 am

1/16/14 SB2247: Senate Status Update

Source: SB2247 Status Feed

Interesting.  Thank you for sharing.  I know I will be following this one.  I have my reservations about the bill, but it looks pretty straight forward.  What are others thoughts on this bill?  I copied some of the Fed Regs in for the definitions that I thought were important in the bill.  I would like to know what qualifies the court, board, commission, or other lawful authority that this bill refers to make the determination of "mental defective".  Are they all considered specialists in the mental health industry or not?

SB2247
(f)  For purposes of this section, the terms "adjudicated as a mental defective", "committed to a mental institution", and "mental institution" shall be construed in accordance with title
18 United States Code section 922, title 27 Code of Federal Regulations section 478.11, and judicial interpretations of those provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations

Adjudicated as a mental defective. (a) A determination by a court, board, commission, or other lawful authority that a person, as a result of marked subnormal intelligence, or mental illness, incompetency, condition, or disease:

(1) Is a danger to himself or to others; or

(2) Lacks the mental capacity to contract or manage his own affairs.

(b) The term shall include—

(1) A finding of insanity by a court in a criminal case; and

(2) Those persons found incompetent to stand trial or found not guilty by reason of lack of mental responsibility pursuant to articles 50a and 72b of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 U.S.C. 850a, 876b.

Committed to a mental institution. A formal commitment of a person to a mental institution by a court, board, commission, or other lawful authority. The term includes a commitment to a mental institution involuntarily. The term includes commitment for mental defectiveness or mental illness. It also includes commitments for other reasons, such as for drug use. The term does not include a person in a mental institution for observation or a voluntary admission to a mental institution.

"includes commitments for other reasons" looks like a catch all as they only use one example and do not expand upon what exactly this will include...

.

When I was a kid I was afraid of the needle but got a Hot Wheels after the visit.

Now i fear the DR and after the visit they take away your toys. (Firearm)

Note the phrase "other lawful authority", i.e. anyone legally authorized to make such a determination... doesn't have to be a mental health professional, or any professional of any kind who determines that you are no longer eligible to own a firearm. Add to that that there is absolutely no evidence that there is any objective set of standards to scientifically psychologically test and evaluate a person and determine to any statistically significant degree if that person is actually going to commit violent acts in  the future* (i.e. they're makin' sh*t up). But hey, don't let that stop them. Let them name whoever (your GP or physician assistant or nurse practitioner or the local cop on the beat) as the "lawful authority" who can put you on the prohibited list.

See Gun Owners of America legal counsel Michael Hammond's column here: http://www.gunowners.org/news1082014.htm

*Exhibit 1: Adam Lanza. In the mental health system of evaluation and diagnosis constantly since toddlerhood, died via suicide at 20 after killing 26 people (mostly 5 year olds) at Sandyhook Elementary School. During a year long investigation, the state of Connecticut interviewed many of the "mental health professionals" who had evaluated Lanza over the years and every single one of them asserted that there was no evidence that he was prone to any kind of violent act. Now maybe they were just covering for themselves to avoid potential liability lawsuits (but their records were viewed), and maybe they don't have any scientific tools that will actually allow them to make such a determination, one way or the other.

1/21/14 SB2247: Referred to PSM/HTH, JDL.
21 January 2014, 3:00 am

1/21/14 SB2247: Senate Status Update

Source: SB2247 Status Feed