FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky currently has no legal process to temporarily take away firearms from individuals believed to be a danger to themselves or others. A proposed Crisis Aversion and Rights Retention (CARR) bill aims to change that, though an attempt to get it passed during the 2024 legislative session failed.
State Sen. David Yates (D-Louisville), a co-sponsor of the 2024 bill, remains committed to moving the legislation forward.
“Last session, we did have a committee hearing. I’m hoping to do that again. And this may be baby steps, but we got to keep moving forward,” Yates said.
The CARR bill would allow law enforcement to temporarily take firearms from a person who is believed to be a danger to themselves or others.
Yates and his co-sponsor outgoing State Sen. Whitney Westerfield (R-Fruit Hill) faced resistance from opponents who see it as an infringement on the Second Amendment, or did not fully understand what the bill aims to do.
“Why would we not want to do something? Why would we think that we can continue to sit on our hands and say no and expect things to change? In fact, I think we’re almost negligent for failure to act,” Yates said.
A poll conducted by UpONE Insights in Jan. 2024 found that of the 600 Republican voters interviewed, 72% supported the passage of a CARR bill. It also found strong support from those who support former President Donald Trump, live in rural areas, and who are supporters of the National Rifle Association.
Read the rest at Spectrum News.
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