FRANKFORT, Ky. — A bill that would temporarily remove firearms from a person experiencing a mental health crisis has been filed in the State Senate.
Senate Bill 13, known as the Crisis Aversion and Rights Retention bill, was filed Thursday by Whitney Westerfield, R-Fruit Hill. Sen. David Yates, D-Louisville, also signed on as a co-sponsor.
“We don't want to take away guns from people who are law-abiding citizens," Westerfield said. "We want to step in temporarily to keep people safe."
Anyone concerned with someone’s well-being can reach out to law enforcement under Westerfield's bill. That officer would then petition a judge to have their firearms removed.
"I think about how many people I can talk to and how many suicides can be prevented, how many killings could be prevented and the time has come that we do something," Yates said.
A person’s firearms would be removed for up to 90 days and could be extended following another hearing. Twenty-one states and Washington, D.C. have similar laws.
“The bill does include a presumption that's rebuttable,” Westerfield said. “The default position, both when the court is reviewing the petition initially and every subsequent review thereafter, is that the gun should be returned.”
This section of the bill was of interest to Speaker Pro Tem David Givens, R-Greensburg, who was present at Tuesday’s CARR bill gathering. Givens said while he has not yet read through Westerfield’s bill, he’s glad conversations about this topic are happening.
“I do sense more open minds than ever before about wading into this difficult space and trying to find the balance in those times of mental health crisis for us to assist someone in getting through it without damaging themselves or hurting someone in their circle,” Givens said.
Westerfield said he believes CARR does not infringe on someone's Second Amendment rights.
“You can look at any constitutional right, and there are limitations set either by policymakers or by the court; this is no different," Westerfield said. "This is narrowing enough, temporary enough, limited enough in scope. I think it easily meets a constitutional test."
Westerfield and Yates announced the bill’s filing to a room full of CARR bill supporters Tuesday. CARR has been supported in Kentucky by mass shooting survivor Whitney Austin, who was shot 12 times during the 2018 Fifth Third Center shooting in Cincinnati.
Austin then founded the nonprofit Whitney/Strong, an organization that works on gun law reform.
Westerfield hopes his bill will be assigned to a committee quickly, he said. He added lawmakers from both chambers have privately expressed support for his measure.