Senator Cortese Calls for Strengthening California’s Red Flag Laws to Prevent Gun Violence & Mass Shootings

Senator Dave Cortese (D-San Jose) is calling for the expansion and improvement of California’s “red flag” laws to prevent gun violence and mass shootings. This week’s mass shooting in the Senator’s District in San Jose that took the lives of 9 Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) workers has served as a call to action for many.

“Like many in our community, this tragedy has served to strengthen my resolve in taking meaningful steps to address senseless gun violence and put an end to the mass shootings that plague our state and our entire country,” says Senator Cortese, a former member of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors as well as the VTA Board. “I intend to bring the best minds in law enforcement and mental health together to draft legislation to address this challenge.”

“We cannot help but wonder if, in this instance, were our red flag laws invoked, could they have potentially saved members of our community?” Senator Cortese wrote in an official letter sent to Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen. “Furthermore, are there barriers that can be addressed to strengthen these laws so that they are able to prevent even more tragic deaths?”

The letter provided an official request from the Senator to partner with District Attorney Rosen on legislative efforts to expand and improve upon California’s “red flag” laws in the State Legislature. The Senator has stated that District Attorney Rosen expressed his commitment to partner on these efforts to strengthen the state’s red flag laws such that they aren’t evaded and are invoked when necessary to prevent future tragedies.

California was one of the first states to enact “red flag” laws, laws that allow temporary restraining orders or seizures of guns by law enforcement and the District Attorney’s Office from people identified as potentially dangerous.

These gun violence restraining orders have confiscated guns from over 3,000 people deemed as threats in the last three years across the state.