Re: Letter from Florida Senator Rick Scott.

---

He is being totally disingenuous when he states the following:

“When properly constructed with due process protections, red flag laws are commonsense measures to keep weapons out of the hands of any person who threatens to harm themselves or others.”

“I was proud to recently join Senator Marco Rubio in introducing the Extreme Risk Protection Order and Violence Prevention Act of 2021 (S. 292) that would build on our efforts at the state level to help keep families safe nationwide. I will continue to review any proposal aimed at keeping Americans safe.”

What Scott, Rubio and others aren’t telling people is the following:

• Florida and Indiana are the only 2 States with such a law and it was passed in less than 2 weeks as a knee jerk reaction to a total failure of LE (Broward County Sheriff and FBI) and School Administration. It passed overwhelmingly by RINOs in the House and by only 1 vote in the Senate. The 48 pages within SB 7026, Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Act, that codifies the RPO is almost a direct lift of far left Oregon’s Extreme Risk Protection law.
• RPOs are based on anyone calling LE and complaining that someone is a “threat” without any proof other than a statement and with little investigation by LE. It is basically a rubber stamp process as illustrated by the fact that very few are denied by presiding Judges(s).
• RPO is a Civil Process not a Criminal one so the judge issuing the RPO only has to have “reasonable suspicion” based on a statement by someone that a person is a threat to themselves or others. The normal legal standard “Beyond Reasonable Doubt is not used in this process.”
• Normal legal principle of being “innocent until proven guilty” is thrown out the window.
• Seizure takes place without prior notification and without a hearing involving the person accused of being a threat.
• The “Respondent” (person accused of being a threat) is not provided with a Public Defender and must hire a private attorney if they expect to prevail at the hearing. On the other hand, LE who request the RPO are represented by their internal attorney(s) at the hearing.
• If respondent is found to be a threat by the Court they lose possession of their property for 1 year and this can be indefinitely extended.
• Although a crime has not been committed the respondent is immediately placed in both the FL and National Criminal Data Bases with no procedure spelled out to be taken off. It is very difficult to be taken off.
• Respondent can receive RPO for something that was said or occurred up to 1 year ago.
• No provisions are made to properly maintain the respondent’s property and return it in same condition as when seized.
• Statistics to date in FL reveal that an average of 10% of respondents are found not to be a threat at the after the fact hearing. The respondent has been subjected to a humiliating and frightening process without Due Process or recourse for any kind of recompense. There is no automatic process for removing them from criminal data bases even though no crime has been committed.
• Those who are stripped of their 2A rights are left defenseless against criminals who will possess and use firearms in committing crimes regardless of any Red Flag laws.
• The RPO process does not recognize or take into account law abiding gun owners with no prior criminal record with CCW permits meaning they have been through a background check.
• The RPO can be weaponized and/or politicized against innocent people thus limiting or scaring people from freely exercising their 1st Amendment Rights.

Red Flag Laws are an unconstitutional process which violates 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 14th Amendments and is trading off individual Liberty for possible but unproven Safety. Senator’s Scott, Rubio and any other so called “law makers” who advocate for such laws are helping the Marxist, Communist Democrats and their ilk to chip away at our God given, Constitutionally guaranteed rights for strictly political purposes.

“Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father

---

Letter from Senator Rick Scott (R-FL)

Dear Mr. Brown,

Thank you for contacting me regarding your concerns about gun violence in America. I appreciate the opportunity to respond.

The safety of our families is always my top priority, and I am a proud supporter of the Constitution, the Second Amendment and the rights of law-abiding citizens. As Governor of Florida, I worked to increase safety measures in Florida’s schools through the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, which also included a new process to enable law enforcement to seek a judicially issued Extreme Risk Protection Order in appropriate circumstances, commonly referred to as a “red flag” law. When properly constructed with due process protections, red flag laws are commonsense measures to keep weapons out of the hands of any person who threatens to harm themselves or others.

As a United States Senator, I remain focused on making sure that our communities are safe, and that those struggling with mental health issues or threatening harm to themselves or others cannot access or possess a weapon. I was proud to recently join Senator Marco Rubio in introducing the Extreme Risk Protection Order and Violence Prevention Act of 2021 (S. 292) that would build on our efforts at the state level to help keep families safe nationwide. I will continue to review any proposal aimed at keeping Americans safe.

Again, thank you for your correspondence. I am proud to represent every citizen in Florida and I appreciate the time you took to provide your position on this matter. Should you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Rick Scott

United States Senator

©Royal A. Brown, III. All rights reserve.