Substantially More Red Flag Applications Filed in Last Three Months Than All of 2021
State Police Reports More Than 93 Percent Increase, Suffolk County Sheriff's Office Reports More Than 75 Percent Increase in Red Flag Applications
Progress Comes After Governor Hochul Implemented Executive Order and Passed New Legislation Requiring Red Flag Law Implementation
State Will Offer New Red Flag Law Training in Partnership with Everytown for Gun Safety
Governor Kathy Hochul announced a major increase in applications for Extreme Risk Protection Orders under New York's Red Flag Law—with substantially more ERPOs filed in the last three months than in all of 2021. The increase comes after Governor Hochul took decisive action in the wake of the mass shooting in Buffalo, issuing an Executive Order requiring State Police to expand their use of the Red Flag Law and working with the legislature to pass a new law requiring all law enforcement agencies in New York to increase the use of these potentially life-saving orders. Governor Hochul made the announcement in Suffolk County where the County Sheriff's Office is reporting a more than 75 percent increase in utilization of the Red Flag Law over the last three months.
"My top priority as governor is to keep New Yorkers safe," Governor Hochul said. "In the wake of the horrific shooting in my hometown of Buffalo, we took quick and decisive action to get illegal guns off our streets and away from individuals who would use them to harm themselves or others. Now, we see our efforts are working, thanks to the heroic efforts of our partners in law enforcement who are on the front lines in the fight to protect public safety and end the scourge of gun violence."
On May 18, four days after the Buffalo shooting, Governor Hochul issued an executive order directing the State Police to apply for an ERPO when there is probable cause that someone posed a danger to themselves or others. On July 6, a new state law signed by the Governor took effect, expanding that order to all law enforcement agencies and district attorneys. The law also added to the list of those who can file orders.
A total of 832 temporary and final ERPOs have been issued in New York State in the past three months (May - August 2022), compared to the 1,424 issued from August 2019 to April 2022.
State Police have filed 184 red flag applications since Governor Hochul signed Executive Order 19 on May 18, 2022, a more than 93 percent increase over the 95 orders filed by State Police in all of 2021. Suffolk County has been a leader in utilizing ERPOs since the Red Flag Law was enacted in August of 2019. Since the week of May 16, the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office has served 114 protection orders, a more than 75 percent increase compared with all of 2021.
Governor Hochul is also announcing that under a partnership between the NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services and Everytown for Gun Safety, the State is offering a free training webinar for law enforcement titled "Extreme Risk Protection Orders - Overview for Law Enforcement." The training, which has been offered to all law enforcement agencies in New York will be held on August 24, and will cover identifying extreme risk behavior, how to file, execute, and extend an ERPO.
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