After mass shooting, bill would require Army to use state crisis laws to remove weapons

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A bill introduced after a mass shooting in Maine would require the Army to use state crisis intervention laws to remove the weapons of a service member who is deemed to be a serious threat to themselves or others, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, the bill’s sponsor, said Monday.

The Armed Forces Crisis Intervention Notification Act is aimed at addressing missed opportunities by the military and civilian law enforcement to intervene before an Army reservist who had spiraled into psychosis opened fire at two locations in Lewiston, Maine, killing 18 people and injuring 13 others on Oct. 25, 2023.

“We have a chance to help service members in crisis. We have a chance to help protect our neighbors and families. We have a chance to save lives,” Collins said in a statement. Maine’s other senator, independent Angus King, is a co-sponsor of the bill.

This bill seeks to ensure communication between state agencies and military service branches after criticism that the Army wasn’t as forthcoming as it could’ve been with state law enforcement officials about the gunman, 40-year-old Robert Card, before the shooting rampage. It requires the military to participate in state crisis actions, including so-called red flag or yellow flag laws aimed at removing weapons from someone who’s experiencing a psychiatric emergency.

Law enforcement officials had known about Card’s growing paranoia, and Card had been hospitalized last summer while his reserve unit was training in New York state. Health care providers who assessed him said he was psychotic and had a hit list, and recommended that he not have access to weapons.

Military officials restricted Card’s access to military weapons but Card still had access to privately owned weapons at his home in Bowdoin, Maine. The Army had no immediate comment.

The Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office was asked to go to Card’s home and check on his well-being after he’d threatened to “shoot up” the home of his Army Reserve unit, but a deputy who tried to meet with Card was unaware of details about what happened in New York state or the extent of his mental health crisis.

This bill, introduced Monday afternoon, wouldn’t affect the military’s existing authority to disarm service members in a broad range of situations, Collins said. Instead, the bill aims to eliminate a gap in communication between military and civilian law enforcement that could’ve prevented the tragedy in Maine.

“We cannot bring back our friends and family members we lost last October, but we can take steps to fix the cracks in the system that led to the tragedy,” King added.

The mass shooting has been investigated by an independent commission appointed by the governor, along with the Army Reserve and by the Army Office of the Inspector General. Maine Gov. Janet Mills previously said that the tragedy “was caused by a colossal failure of human judgment by several people, on several occasions.”

Maine’s so-called yellow flag law has been used 425 times — including 344 times since the tragedy in Lewiston, officials said.

On Monday, she praised Collins and King for the bill. “Providing the military with this authority will equip them with another tool to address potentially dangerous situations among military personnel and close communication gaps, which will help protect people, prevent violence and save lives,” she said.