Moms Demand Action Volunteers Call on Lawmakers to Pass HB 89 on Annual Advocacy Day
JUNEAU, Alaska — Yesterday, volunteers from the Alaska chapter of Moms Demand Action, part of Everytown for Gun Safety’s grassroots network, traveled from across the state for a day of action at the State Capitol. Gun safety advocates met with lawmakers, urging them to support and prioritize common sense gun safety legislation like raising awareness for secure firearm storage and passing an extreme risk law (HB 89), a critical tool to help temporarily remove firearms from those at imminent risk to themselves or others. Alaska has the third-highest rate of gun suicides in the U.S., with an average of 70 hours between gun suicide deaths. 71 percent of gun deaths in Alaska are by gun suicide.
Alaska also has no pathway to allow family members or law enforcement to petition for the temporary removal of guns from dangerous situations. Also known as an Extreme Risk or “red flag” law, this is a critical policy for people at risk of harming themselves or others, preventing them from accessing firearms during a moment of crisis. More information on effective prevention methods can be found here.
HB 89 would prevent gun deaths in Alaska. What to know about Extreme Risk Laws:
- In many instances of gun violence, there are clear warning signs that a shooter may pose a serious threat before the shooting. Extreme Risk laws, sometimes called “red flag” laws, empower loved ones and law enforcement, who are often the first to see warning signs, to intervene in order to temporarily prevent someone in crisis from accessing firearms.
- These laws allow people who recognize that their loved one is in crisis to contact law enforcement and ask them to petition a court for a Gun Violence Protective Order. Family members, intimate partners, or household members can also file these petitions themselves if they prefer not to involve law enforcement.
- If a court determines that a person presents a danger of injuring themselves or others, that person can be temporarily prohibited from purchasing and possessing guns, and required to relinquish their guns while the order is in effect.
- Twenty-one other states and D.C. have extreme risk laws.
- In 32 percent of mass shootings with four or more people killed from 2015 to 2022, the shooter exhibited dangerous warning signs before the shooting. Between 1999 and 2024, at least 49,000 Extreme Risk petitions were filed. The majority of these petitions have been filed since the Parkland shooting.
In an average year, 175 people die by guns in Alaska. With a rate of 17.1 gun suicide deaths per 100,000 people, Alaska has the third-highest rate of firearm suicide deaths in the nation. Alaska also has the fifth-highest rate of gun deaths in the nation with 23.9 gun deaths per 100,000 people. Gun violence costs Alaska $2.5 billion each year, of which $44.5 million is paid by taxpayers. More information about gun violence in Alaska is available here.