Why is a decade-old red flag gun law still only seeing scattered use across California?

"In response to the scourge of mass shootings that have helped define the 21st century in the United States, lawmakers in California passed a landmark red-flag law that would allow authorities to disarm those whose threatening behavior might boil over into deadly violence. It's been about a decade since gun-violence restraining orders were enabled by California law, but their use is still middling in the state, according to data from the California Department of Justice."

""We have example after example where (the orders) have prevented a suicide, a domestic violence shooting or a mass shooting," Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in an interview. "But there is still room to grow." Santa Clara County has secured the most gun-violence restraining orders in the state for two years running. It filed 683 orders in 2024, or 41% more than San Diego County, which filed 483 and had previously topped the list."

"In the Bay Area, San Mateo County filed 166 orders in 2024, followed by Alameda County with 128, San Francisco with 35, and Contra Costa with 14. The restraining orders came into stronger public focus in September as part of National Suicide Prevention Month and a concerted effort by the California Office of Emergency Services and its Reduce the Risk campaign, for which Rosen is an official adviser."

California's red-flag law authorizes temporary removal of firearms from people who display threatening behavior that could lead to violence. Gun-violence restraining orders have existed for about a decade but remain only moderately used according to California Department of Justice data. Santa Clara County led the state with 683 orders filed in 2024, surpassing San Diego County's 483 filings. Several Bay Area counties also filed orders, including San Mateo (166), Alameda (128), San Francisco (35) and Contra Costa (14). The orders received heightened attention during National Suicide Prevention Month and via the Reduce the Risk campaign. Supporters describe the orders as a compromise that temporarily removes weapons and requires judicial review before return.

Read at The Mercury News