More Bad News For Anti-Gun Nuts Arising From Maine Shooting

 Although the Robert Card was found dead, apparently due to a self-inflicted gun shot wound to the head, that won't stop the gun grabbers from using the shooting to urge new gun control laws, even though there were plenty of laws already on the books to stop Card and his shooting--I mean, above and beyond the basic laws against murder.

    I've previously discussed Maine laws prohibiting carrying a firearm on a premises that serves alcohol, which most definitely included the bar, Schemengees Bar and Grill, where one of the shootings took place. I've also noted that federal law requires a background check and that Card should have been prohibited under federal law from possessing a firearm due to his hospitalization for mental illness a prior threat to commit a shooting at a National Guard base (see here and here). 

    But here are some additional items:

• "Bowling Alley Where Maine Attacker Fatally Shot 7 Is a Gun-Free Zone"--Breitbart. From the lede:

    The bowling alley where Robert Card allegedly shot and killed 7 people has a sign on the front door announcing the premises are gun free.

    The location, formerly called Sparetime Recreation, is now called Just-in-Time Bowling Alley.

    John Lott Jr.’s Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) noted that the sign says, “We kindly ask that you refrain from bringing firearms in this building and we would appreciate it if you left them in your vehicle. Please keep our atmosphere family friendly.”

The article goes on to note that 94% of mass shootings occur in gun free zones.

• "Maine mass shooter Robert Card's former wife and teenage son were in HIDING amid fears killer was hunting for an ex when he gunned down 18 - as bombshell divorce papers reveal he was ordered to keep weapons 'under lock and key'"--Daily Mail. The relevant bit:

    The couple jointly filed for divorce in 2007 in Sagahoc County court, citing irreconcilable differences. 

    In 2013 the divorce agreement was amended to include an ominous requirement, stipulating that 'all guns in either party’s home shall be under lock and key during which time they are not being used.' 

• "Maine Police Say Lewiston Suspect WAS Prohibited From Possessing Guns"--Bearing Arms. The article reports that according to the State Bureau of Investigation, Card was categorized as “Federal Firearms Disqualified Status” although he didn't show up on a list of persons with firearms confiscated under Maine's "yellow flag" laws. Noting that Card "reportedly spent two weeks in an Army medical center in West Point, New York after displaying 'erratic' behavior during training exercises," the article goes on to indicate that "[w]hile that information was reported to federal officials, it doesn’t sound like it was conveyed to state authorities." But, "[t]he suspects family, however, says they were in contact with both law enforcement and the military over the past few months to express their growing concerns about his 'rapidly deteriorating' mental state." 

According to this article from WGME in Portland, Maine:

    Maine's so-called "yellow flag" law took effect back in 2020.

    It changed protective custody law to allow law enforcement to temporarily take guns away from people who may be in danger of hurting themselves or others.

    It's different than other state's "red flag" laws because it requires a two-step sign off from both a judge and a medical provider before weapons can be taken away.

    That medical practitioner must sign off on the request first to determine the person's mental condition.

So Maine had a law allowing for confiscation of a firearm from a mentally disturbed person, but it just wasn't called a "red flag" law. Meaning that the claims in the media that Maine lacks a "red flag" law is disinformation.

• "Maine shooting: Lewiston police were warned about Robert Card weeks before massacre"--Fox News. This article reports:

    Law enforcement officials told the Associated Press that they were alerted to "veiled threats" by Card, a U.S. Army reservist, after he threatened soldiers at a southern Maine National Guard Base in Saco.

    When authorities visited Card's home and couldn't find him, they dropped their investigation.

    "We added extra patrols, we did that for about two weeks," Saco Police Chief Jack Clements explained. "The guy never showed up."

    "Never came in contact with this guy, never received any phone calls from the reserve center saying, ‘Hey, we got somebody who was causing a problem,’" he added. "We never got anything."

    Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel Merry alerted every law enforcement agency in Maine after the Army Reserve informed his department, but also could not find Card after a welfare check to his residence.

    "We couldn’t locate him," Merry said.

    The FBI told AP that they were not aware of suspicious activity from Card, explaining they "did not have nor did [we] receive any tips or information concerning Robert Card."

    "[The background check system] was not provided with or in possession of any information that would have prohibited Card from a lawful firearm purchase," the agency added.

    Perhaps the investigation should start looking into the mental health providers that let this guy go back into public.