From CeaseFirePA (http://www.ceasefirepa.org):
This week Speaker Cutler took the gavel in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives after five years of iron fist rule by former Speaker Mike Turzai. During that time, we were not able to even get a vote on a bill that would temporarily remove guns from dangerous individual’s hands by creating Extreme Risk Protection Orders.
But, Speaker Cutler has promised a different kind of House whose “job is to get the issues solved.”1 House Bill 1075 would solve help solve a clear problem that’s rising since the COVID-19 pandemic: suicide and deadly domestic abuse².
Go to https://ceasefirepa.salsalabs.org/speakercutlererpo/index.html to tell Speaker Cutler: Bring Extreme Risk Protection Orders to the floor for a full vote.
A few years ago, Representative Cutler supported another bill to help disarm domestic abusers. This was a bipartisan bill, with broad support, that Governor Wolf signed.³ But, that is not the only situation when a gun can turn deadly. You may notice a friend or family member who is extremely depressed. A gun can increase the likelihood they will complete a suicide attempt before they can get the help they need.
We’ve seen angry gun-wielders take the lives of their communities across the country. And, hateful individuals use guns to storm places of worship from Charleston to Pittsburgh.
But there is no mechanism to temporarily remove a firearm from someone who may harm themselves or others. It’s a problem that demands a solution–and Speaker Cutler says that is his goal. Sign the petition.
House Bill 1075 will allow family members or law enforcement to remove guns from homes until a judge has time to assess the potential danger someone who is depressed, angry or otherwise violent could pose to themselves and others around them.
It’s time to bring this important bill to a vote.
¹Sam Janesch and Gillian McGoldrick, “Meet Speaker Cutler: A look at the Lancaster County leader’s approach to his powerful role in the Pa. House”, Lancaster Online, June 24, 2020.
²HB 1075
³Liv Navratil, “Pa. Senate passes bill tightening gun rules in domestic violence cases”, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Oct. 3, 2018.
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