DETROIT — In 2024, close to 300 individuals in Michigan were prohibited from owning firearms due to a new legislative measure designed to protect public safety. This groundbreaking law allows the judicial system to step in when there is credible evidence indicating that a person may pose a risk to themselves or to others.
Michigan’s new law falls under the category of red flag laws, a framework that has now been adopted by at least 20 other states. It gives police, healthcare professionals, family members, or roommates the authority to petition local courts for temporary gun possession bans lasting one year. Advocates, including Governor Gretchen Whitmer and various supporters, believe that such actions could significantly reduce the likelihood of mass shootings and domestic violence incidents. The law went into effect on February 13, 2024, marking a year since a tragic incident at Michigan State University, where three students were fatally shot, and five others were injured. This legislation is part of a larger package aimed at enhancing gun safety, which was passed by the Democratic-led Legislature.
According to the State Court Administrative Office, there were a total of 391 complaints lodged in 2024, resulting in 287 no-gun orders issued. In contrast, 84 cases were rejected, and 14 complaints either were dismissed or the orders were revoked following court hearings. Individuals who find themselves under a no-gun order have the right to request a judicial review to reconsider the ruling during the year-long period that the order is in effect.
The report also indicated that at least 31 individuals with no-gun orders faced criminal charges at some point afterward; however, those charges were not connected to the violation of the gun ban. An analysis conducted in 2022 revealed that between 2020 and that time, firearms were confiscated from individuals across states with red flag laws a total of 15,049 instances, which translates to less than 10 per 100,000 adults.
The legislation comes in the context of past tragedies involving firearms in Michigan, including the recent case of a 43-year-old gunman who took his own life off campus after killing multiple students. His writings indicated he struggled with mental health issues and he had been described as a social recluse. This follows the heartbreaking events in 2021, when four students lost their lives to a fellow student at Oxford High School.
