Maryland Cops Descend on Man's Homes to Confiscate His Guns Under New "Red Flag" Law; When Man Scuffles to Keep Possession of Guns, He's Shot Dead

Wonderful.

It seems like a member of his family filed the "red flag" complaint, so it's possible this guy was behaving strangely or threateningly enough to justify some kind of an intervention.

He also seems to have opened the door with a gun in hand, which is legal, but also seems provocative.

This doesn't bode well for "red flag" laws going forward.

Two police officers ordered to remove firearms from a house on a "red flag" protective order fatally shot an armed man Monday morning in Ferndale, Maryland, police said. Anne Arundel County Police arrived at the house at 5:17 a.m. to remove guns from the home under a new law that temporarily allows for the seizure of firearms if a person shows "red flags" that they are a danger to themselves or others, CBS Baltimore reports.

A man, later identified by police as 61-year-old Gary Willis, answered his door with a gun in his hand, Anne Arundel County Police Sgt. Jacklyn Davis said.

Sgt. Davis said the man put the gun down. But then, according to a police press release, Willis "became irate" when officers attempted to serve the order. Willis picked the weapon up again, "a fight ensued over the gun," and a shot was fired, Davis said. The first shot didn't strike anyone, but the officers then fatally shot the man, Sgt. Davis said.

Neither of the officers were injured. Their names weren't released.

It wasn't clear why the "red flag" order was issued. A spokeswoman for the Maryland Judiciary denied a request from the Baltimore Sun to release protection order requests associated with the home, citing the law which states the orders are confidential unless a court rules otherwise.

Michele Willis, the man's niece, told The Baltimore Sun that one of her aunts requested the protective order against Willis, but she declined to say why.

posted by Ace of Spades at 05:48 PM

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