In recent years, many states in the U.S. have responded to multiple incidents of mass shootings by passing “red flag laws” intended to provide a means by which potentially dangerous (and armed) persons could be legally restricted prior to their engaging in harmful acts: They are state laws that authorize courts to issue a special type of protection order, allowing the police to temporarily confiscate firearms from people who are deemed by a judge to be a danger to themselves or to others. Often, the request for the order will come from relatives or friends concerned about a loved one who owns one or more guns and has expressed suicidal thoughts or discussed shooting people. The authorities may also request an order. How long the guns are taken away under these “extreme risk protection orders” depends on the circumstances, and can usually be extended only after another court hearing. The orders also bar the person they cover from purchasing guns In general, red flag laws authorize courts to issue a special type of protection order that allows police to temporarily confiscate firearms from persons deemed by judges to be a danger to themselves or to others. Advocates argue that such laws can help save lives without infringing on civil liberties, while opponents maintain that “red flag” seizures violate constitutional due process guarantees. In February 2018, a few weeks after a mass shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida left 17 people dead, U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence Trump met with lawmakers to discuss the subjects of gun laws and school safety. Nikolas Cruz, the suspected shooter, had been able to legally purchase an AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle even though local police had previously received multiple calls about his potentially dangerous behavior, a subject that Trump and Pence discussed at that meeting.
"U.S. President Donald Trump said ""We're going to take the firearms first and then go to court."