TSRA Testified on Anti-Red Flag Bill
TSRA Military and Veteran Director, William Nance, testified on behalf of the Texas State Rifle Association on Monday, March 10, 2025, in the Senate Committee on State Affairs. His testimony was one of several in support of Senate Bill 1362, an anti-red flag law bill. SB 1362 was filed by Senator Bryan Hughes.
“Several states have passed laws regarding the implementation of extreme risk protection orders with a myriad of different requirements,” said Nance. He first acknowledged that TSRA fully supports passage of this bill. “But the thing they all have in common is they deprive an individual of their right to keep and bear arms as provided in the Second Amendment, as well as the protection against search and seizure guaranteed in the Fourth Amendment.”
Fran Rhodes with True Texas Project shared that even as a non-gun expert, the bill is important. “Depriving people of clearly established Constitutional guaranteed right in the absence of criminal charges is an affront to liberty and must not be tolerated,” she shared. “Haphazardly seizing guns from a citizen without some evidence or due process of law is not an acceptable trade off for potential future safety.”
Rhodes shared data-driven information in her testimony. She commented on the lack of success other states have had with red flag laws. She cited articles from the New York Times and the Washington Post. “The Washington Post has reported that California’s red flag law went unused for two years after passage.”
Data was another part of the testimony provided by TSRA too. Nance shared a study by renowned statistician John Lott. The study found that red flag laws do “not have significant effect on murder, suicide, or aggravated assault rate.” He also shared information on a DOD study. “Even if certain red flags are common among mass shooters, almost none of the people who display those signs are actually bent on violence.”
The bill heard testimony from a total of 10 individuals. Public testimony closed and the bill is still pending.
Story by Marissa Brinkman and TSRA Legislative Team
March 12, 2025