The Ramsey County Prosecutor’s Office is stepping up its work under the new state red flag lawtrained 150 people Thursday and announced plans to review cases to determine whether they qualify for a civil court process to temporarily take someone’s firearms.

When Minnesota implemented Extreme Risk Protection Orders earlier this year, it joined other states with similar processes. The law allows a court order to be issued prohibiting someone from owning or purchasing a firearm if the person poses a significant danger of harming themselves or others.

Officials could wait for cases to come in, but Ramsey County Prosecutor John Choi said they are being intentional in seeking orders to help with homicide-suicide prevention. They are also intended to be used when there are threats of mass harm, including school shootings.

As law enforcement submits cases to the Ramsey County Prosecutor’s Office for consideration of felony charges, Choi announced Thursday that they will be asked to complete an investigative checklist, including whether a Risk Protection Order Extremes would be appropriate in the case. If prosecutors agree there is a legal basis to proceed, the county attorney’s office will file a court petition to begin the process.

“This is about preventing tragedy,” said Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher. “…Time and time again…after the tragedy happens, we go back and look at the police reports, the evidence, we talk to family members and they tell us, ‘Well, we try to warn people. We called the police, we told them what was going to happen. Or we knew there was a problem, but we didn’t really know how to handle it properly.’”

There were 109 petitions for Extreme Risk Protection Orders filed between the beginning of the year and last Friday, 83 filed by a law enforcement agency and 26 by a citizen, according to the Minnesota Judiciary. Family or household members are among those who can apply.

There are two types of orders: an emergency order, which takes effect immediately and lasts for 14 days, and a long-term order, which can only be granted after a court hearing and lasts between six months and a year.

In Minnesota petitions, there were 30 when an emergency order was granted; 66 when an emergency order was granted and then a long-term order was granted after a hearing; five cases in which a long-term order was granted after a hearing; and eight cases in which no order was issued, according to the Judiciary.

Using the orders on threats of self-harm and domestic violence

Although the term is not used in Minnesota law, they are commonly called “red flag” laws.

Chris Carita, a national expert on violence prevention and threat management, said that in many states that have passed these types of laws, “they end up being kind of a tool that takes a backseat. … The problem with that is that, when no one takes responsibility for carrying it out, … you wait until a tragedy occurs where you needed it and then you are not prepared to use it properly.”

With 73% of gun deaths in the state classified as suicide between 2018 and 2021, it is important that Minnesota law has a caveat that allows cases to be sealed when they involve only threats of self-harm, Carita said.

“If a family member suffers a mental health crisis and threatens to take his or her life, a judge has the option of… keeping him or her out of public view, which helps maintain the dignity of a person who is likely to be going through a mental health crisis and need to seek help,” Carita said.

When people are concerned about someone in their family and wondering, “Is there anything that doesn’t simply criminalize this risk?”, they should know that Extreme Risk Protection Orders are “a civil tool, so the focus is on in removing that weapon from a person that could harm someone when there might not be any other criminal activity present,” said St. Paul City Attorney Lyndsey Olson.

Rob Doar, senior vice president of government affairs for the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, said what has surprised them most “is the disconnect between the way the bill’s message was sent and the way orders are issued.”

“We were told this was an important tool to allow family members the ability to intercede with a loved one in crisis in an effort to ensure their safety,” he said. “In execution, the overwhelming majority of these orders are requested and granted to law enforcement, not family members.”

The Gun Owners Caucus also remains “concerned about the due process implications of ex parte orders that operate under the presumption that removing a firearm targets the individual in crisis without appropriate measures to address the individual themselves,” it said. Doar.

Some people also ask why Extreme Risk Protection Orders are needed in domestic violence cases, when people can already request a protection order through the Minnesota court system. But Carita said that “the speed with which ERPO can be used and the precision in removing firearms from those situations in the early stages of the case helps make the situation safer for victims of domestic violence.”

Most of the petitions for orders have been filed outside the metropolitan area. Ramsey County has requested three, Hennepin County 24, Dakota County nine and Washington and Anoka counties four each, according to the Judiciary.

Thursday’s training, hosted by the Ramsey County Prosecutor’s Office, brought together law enforcement officers, prosecutors, victim advocates and people who work in the mental health field. There will be future training, including with school staff, Choi said.

How to Request an Extreme Risk Protection Order

The Ramsey County Prosecutor’s Office has information about Extreme Risk Protection Orders, including how a family or household member can apply for them in Ramsey County, at bit.ly/40IlPKF.