This week, editorial boards in Denver and Aurora urged lawmakers to pass HB19-1177, which would empower family members and law enforcement officers to ask a judge to temporarily suspend a person’s access to guns if there is documented evidence that the person poses a serious threat to themself or others.
On Thursday, the Aurora Sentinel weighed in, writing in an editorial:
It’s time to side with reason and responsibility on this easy-to-understand and easy-to-support measure.
Gun activists have made it clear they have no interest in working toward compromise gun-safety measures. Too much life has already been lost and too much is still at stake to accommodate their outright obstruction. State lawmakers and Gov. Jared Polis need to enact this measure now and start protecting residents and police officers before someone else is killed.
A day earlier, the Denver Post emphasized the bill’s robust due process protections in an editorial that began:
Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock does not want to take anyone’s guns — not unless a judge has been convinced through evidence presented in a sworn affidavit and during a hearing that someone poses a significant risk to themselves and others.
That not only is reasonable — it is critical.
Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund has released polling showing the vast majority of Coloradans — including 78 percent of gun owners — support the concept of Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) laws.
More information about ERPO laws – including academic research – is available here.
