Maine Democrats drop opposition to 'red flag' hearing
Jun. 10—Under intense pressure — and threats of a lawsuit — from Republicans and gun rights groups, Democrats reversed course and agreed to hold a public hearing on a citizens initiative that would make it easier to temporarily remove access to firearms from people who are in a crisis.
Republicans announced the public hearing shortly before 11:30 p.m. Monday — only moments after Senate President Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, told state senators to expect an additional public hearing to soon be announced, though she didn't provide details.
The hearing, scheduled for 3 p.m. Wednesday, will focus on a citizen initiative for extreme risk protection order, also known as a 'red flag law," which would allow a family member to petition a court to temporarily remove access to firearms of someone deemed a danger to themselves or others.
Maine currently has a "yellow flag" law, which can only be initiative by police, who can only seek a court order after taking that individual into protective custody and provided them with a mental health evaluation.
Republicans have been pushing for a public hearing ever since Democrats, who control both chambers, decided not to hold a hearing, citing a hearing on a similar bill last session that did not get a floor vote and the fact that it would ultimately be decided by voters.
Republicans accused Democrats of violating a state law, enacted in 2019, requiring a hearing on any citizen initiative that is received when lawmakers are in session.
"I'm relieved that my Democrat colleagues finally realized they could not get away with silencing the voices of Maine citizens to limit criticism of this radical gun-control proposal," Senate Republican Leader Trey Stewart, R-Presque Isle, said in a written statement Monday night. "Even the most rabid gun-control activists realized that breaking the law to silence their opposition was not an acceptable way to move their agenda forward."
The citizens initiative came forward in the wake of the mass shooting in Lewiston in October 2023 and is certain to generate intense debate over gun rights and restrictions ahead of the November vote.
Tensions over the call for a public hearing escalated during a late-night session in the Senate last week in which Republicans tried to force the issue through a series of floor votes. The votes fell along party lines with Republicans voting to move forward with a series of motions aimed at forcing action on a public hearing while Democrats voted against them.
Democrats resisted holding a hearing, saying it's not required in the Maine Constitution. And last week, Daughtry said that a law enacted by a prior legislature could not bind the current group of lawmakers, which Republicans decried as "a dangerous ruling."
The National Rifle Association announced last week that it was joining a planned lawsuit with the Sportsmen's Alliance of Maine and the Gun Owners of Maine.
In a fundraising appeal, SAM speculated that Democrats don't want to hold a hearing because it will highlight opposition, including from Gov. Janet Mills, law enforcement and other Democratic lawmakers.
Mills, a former attorney general, help negotiate the state's current "yellow flag" law and has opposed previous attempts to enact a "red flag" law, which exist in 21 other states.
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