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22 states have red flag laws. What that means and why it's unlikely to spread nationwide

Nearly 63% of Maine voters approved a ballot measure nearly a year ago, making the state the 22nd to adopt a red flag law following the Oct. 25, 2023, Lewiston shooting that killed 18 people.
An independent commission appointed by Gov. Janet Mills found Army officials and law enforcement had opportunities to intervene before the shooting; the state's yellow flag law previously restricted family members from petitioning courts.
Red flag laws allow family members or law enforcement to petition courts to temporarily remove firearms from those at risk. Florida legislators first proposed this after a 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland killed 17 people.
Conversely, Oklahoma lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1081, the Anti-Red Flag Act, to safeguard Second Amendment rights. Tennessee, Texas, Wyoming, West Virginia, and Montana have also enacted bans, while Twenty-two states have neither enacted nor banned such policies.
Connecticut reported 46 petitions filed per 100,000 people in 2025 with nearly 1,700 total, while New York recorded 19,401 petitions—the second-highest number—at a rate of 28 per 100,000 people.

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